Snowbound: Swan Part I
by transmutejun
Summary: Mark, Jason and Princess go on vacation together at a ski resort... but things really heat up!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

I sat on Keyop's bed, watching him pack for his trip. I still couldn't believe that for the first time since we had met, he was going to go on vacation without me.

And I was going to go on vacation without him.

I know Keyop isn't my _real_ brother, but I _feel_ like he is. I practically raised him, he lives with me, and I watch over him as much as I can. I know we have different interests, yet all the same, it hurt when he decided he'd rather go to Aquatica with Tiny rather than to Frozatica with me. I thought he loved skiing!

Apparently, he didn't love skiing as much as goofing off with Tiny. If I had become Keyop's big sister, Tiny had become his big brother. It was rare not to see them together when we were off duty.

So when Tiny asked if Keyop wanted to go to the Cosplay Convention on Aquatica, he'd jumped at the chance. Never mind that the dates conflicted with our skiing trip.

I sighed. I would miss him something fierce. But Keyop was growing up, developing his own interests. I needed to be able to let go. I was over-protective.

Giving my feelings a name didn't make them hurt any less.

"Brrrt… this is gonna be… doot… so much… fun!" Keyop cried with excitement. "Can't wait!"

"So… what's your costume going to be?" I asked, trying desperately to show some interest.

"Hee, hee, hee…" Keyop giggled. "This!" With a flourish he pulled a purple and red garment out of his bag.

"Zoltar?" I gasped, nearly choking in surprise.

"Yeah!" Keyop grinned. "No one will ever… beep… guess my identity!"

"And you made that all by yourself?" I asked. He nodded proudly.

"Wow… you did a terrific job!" I was impressed, in spite of myself.

"Awww… thanks…" Keyop glowed at my praise.

"Does Tiny know?" I asked.

"Nope!" He looked so proud of himself. He had worked so hard on his costume, and was so excited. I knew that I had made the right decision in letting him go.

If only it didn't bother me so much.

He looked over at me quizzically. While his speech often led others to think that Keyop wasn't very bright, he was much more clever and intuitive than most people realized. I knew he was sensitive to my feelings, so I gave him a big smile.

It didn't work.

"Brrrt… you'll have fun, too!" he said. "You… beep… love skiing!"

I slowly shook my head.

"I think I'm going to cancel, Keyop." I said. "It's just not going to be much fun going on my own."

Keyop's face took on a sly look.

"You could… doot… ask Mark… to go too…" he suggested.

"No…" I said, "I couldn't do that…"

I knew my cheeks were turning pink, and I hated it. Why did I always have to wear my heart on my sleeve? People could read me like a book just by looking at my face! It was a darn good thing that I wore a helmet and visor when working as part of G-Force.

"Beep… sure… you could!" Keyop prodded me.

I knew where he was coming from. He wanted me to be happy. And Keyop idolized Mark. Not in the same way he idolized Tiny… more like respect. Besides which, Keyop loved Mark to death.

And he knew that I loved Mark too.

Most of the time, it was a sisterly kind of love. We grew up together, after all, and had the same foster father. But every so often, he would look at me with those big blue eyes, or send a soft smile my way, and my heart just melted.

Problem was, Mark had never indicated that he loved me as anything other than a sister. I suspected that any interest I might have had was completely unreturned.

Which would have been okay… if Keyop hadn't kept throwing it in my face all of the time. He meant well, and he was an eternal optimist. He was convinced that if he could just throw the two of us together, that something would happen.

Oh, how I wished Keyop were right. But I'd been alone with Mark often enough to know that he was not.

I had to come up with something quickly… some reason why I couldn't ask Mark to go skiing with me… before Keyop decided to take that task upon himself.

"I think he said that he was going to Riga, to visit with some of his Space Academy buddies." I offered.

Keyop appeared to buy it.

"Doot… okay…" he said slowly. "But… brrrt… still think… you should go."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

In the end, I decided to go. No matter how lonely it might be, it would be more fun skiing than working extra shifts at Jill's. And who knew? Maybe I would even meet someone at the ski lodge…

Who was I kidding? Did I really think anyone was going to look at me? Everyone knows that men prefer blondes, and women with tans. Here I was with jet-black hair and skin so pale I could have made a marshmallow look tanned. Besides, no guy would want a girl who could beat him up with one arm tied behind her back.

It was with these pleasant thoughts that I boarded the intergalactic transport ship headed to Frozatica. There they were… the seats that Keyop and I were supposed to be occupying. The passengers were seated in pairs, across an aisle going down the middle of the ship.

At least I knew that no one would be sitting next to me. The last thing I needed right now was some would-be-lothario trying to get into my candy-striped pants.

I settled into the seat closest to the window and pulled out the latest issue of Modern Biker. If that didn't warn off any potential predators, nothing would.

Slouching in my seat, reading my magazine, it took me a moment to realize that someone was standing awkwardly in the aisle.

"Ummm… I think you're in my seat." said a male voice.

I hid my face deeper in my magazine.

"Better check your ticket, mister." I growled, not daring to make eye contact. "This is _my_ seat, and so is the one next to it. If you even _think_ of sitting down…"

"You'll… what?" he asked in an amused voice. Hey, he sounded familiar…

I looked up, and saw those incredible blue eyes. Mark.

_And_ he was smiling at me. My insides turned to mush.

"Mark!" I gushed. I knew I was grinning like an idiot, but for just a moment I didn't care. "What are you doing here?"

"Well… I suddenly felt like doing some skiing, and Keyop had this extra ticket..." he replied.

"Oh…" I said, blushing. I didn't know whether I would throttle Keyop or kiss him when I saw him again.

"But you know…" Mark continued, "I think you really _are_ in my seat. This ticket has the number for the window seat."

"Yeah… Keyop likes the window." I said. "I just thought that since he wasn't coming… well… you can have it if you want."

"Okay… if you don't mind." Mark said.

I stood up and leaned back as much as possible. The space allowed for legroom was pretty narrow, and when Mark squeezed by, his fine ass brushed my stomach.

Should I have even been _thinking_ words like 'ass'? I don't care. It was Mark's ass, and it was _fine_. I was turned on even with that quick contact.

But then Mark sat down, and so did I, and it was almost like we were strangers.

"So…" I began, desperately looking for something to say, "when was the last time you went skiing?"

"It's been a couple of years." Mark admitted. "I used to be pretty good, but you know, things have been kind of busy…"

Duh! I was so stupid. _Of course_ he had been too busy to go skiing! I should have known better than anyone how he had been pouring himself into his job as Commander of G-Force. In fact, it was because of Mark and his tendency not to relax that Chief Anderson had required us to all take a vacation in the first place.

"Yeah…" I muttered, trying to salvage the conversation. "It's been awhile for me too…"

"But I hear that the skiing on Frozatica is the best." Mark said.

"I know!" I exclaimed. "I remember learning to ski in the Alps when the Chief used to take us there as kids. I thought it was the most beautiful place in the universe. I didn't think anything could be better than that…"

"I guess Frozatica has a lot to live up to." smiled Mark.

"Yes." I smiled. "I have some pretty high expectations."

"Yeah…" Strangely, Mark seemed at a loss for words. "Um… I had some flight manuals I wanted to read, so if you don't mind…"

"No… not at all." I said, lowering my head so he wouldn't see the disappointment on my face. Here we were, sitting together on an interplanetary transport for the next five hours, and we had run out of conversation in two minutes! I was obviously one boring travel companion.

Burying my face in my magazine, I decided that I was _definitely_ going to throttle Keyop when I got home.

88888

The rest of the trip was even more strained and awkward. When the meal was served we barely spoke, although in the small seating area it was nearly impossible not to bump elbows. And more. When we were about halfway through our entrees, a brief spot of turbulence knocked my arm right into Mark's drink, spilling soda all over his jeans.

"Oh my gosh, I'm _so_ sorry, Mark!" I exclaimed, biting my lower lip. I didn't mean to…"

"It's okay, Princess." Mark said in a quiet voice. I couldn't tell if he was really mad, or just wishing that he was anywhere but here, with me.

I knew my face was bright red, and a flood of tears was threatening to spill onto my cheeks. In an effort to forestall them, I grabbed some napkins and began to dab at Mark's jeans, attempting to clean up whatever I could.

Suddenly, Mark grabbed my wrist and held it firmly. It didn't hurt, but I was surprised at how my arm was instantly immobilized by his grasp.

"Stop, Princess." he muttered. "I'll do it."

I pulled my hand away as if it had been burned. Obviously I had just made things worse.

Mark was able to flag down a passing flight attendant and hand her his meal so he could go to the bathroom. This time I stood in the aisle so that he wouldn't have to squeeze by me.

When he returned, I immediately stood up to let him into his seat.

"I got you another drink, Mark." I offered him the fresh soda.

"Thanks." he muttered, immediately transferring the cup to the hand furthest away from me.

When the movie came on I grabbed the headphones and watched in silence while Mark pretended to nap. I know he was pretending because occasionally I would see him sneak glances at me from the corner of his eye. It really hurt, knowing that Mark was right there next to me and had to feign sleep just to avoid talking to me.

Perhaps this was going to be a solo vacation after all.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

After we landed, Mark and I caught the shuttle to the Ski Lodge. Unfortunately, it was a popular place, and the bus was crowded, with all of the seats taken. We elected to stand rather than wait an hour for the next bus.

We weren't the only ones. By the time all of the passengers and their luggage were loaded onboard, Mark and I were surrounded by fellow skiers. Everyone was smiling and laughing, and having a good time. Everyone, that is, except Mark and me. I was trying to think of something to say, while Mark looked distinctly uncomfortable.

But maybe it wasn't me. With all of the people standing in the shuttle, it was getting harder and harder to establish the kind of personal space that all G-Force team members seemed to require, some of us more than others.

I saw that there was a large lady behind Mark, and he was trying to creep away as much as he could. Problem was, I was on his other side, and he obviously didn't want to get too close to me either. I shuffled my feet backward, in an attempt to give him more space, but bumped into someone else.

"Sorry." I offered to the stranger behind me.

"It's all right. Kind of cozy in here, isn't it?" said a voice in my ear. "My name is Pete."

I shifted around slightly to find myself looking at a burly guy with dark, beady eyes set into a massive face. I could tell by the puffiness around his eyes and his noxious breath that he had obviously taken advantage of the free alcohol onboard the transport.

"Ummm… yeah…" I muttered. "Hi, Pete." Great. Nowhere to go and this guy wanted to chat.

"You look like a party kind of girl." he continued, his eyes looking me over. "My friends and I are throwing a little bash at the bar in the lodge tonight… If you want to come…"

"Uh… no, thanks." I replied. "I'm a little tired from the trip."

"Awww… come on…" he protested, moving closer against me. It might have been the press of the crowd, but somehow I doubted it. I briefly debated teaching him that a girl needs her space, but quickly decided that wasn't an option on a bus this crowded.

"A hot babe, like you, should have some _fun_ on vacation…" he continued, oblivious to my distaste. "You can sleep in tomorrow… if you get any sleep…" he leered. "What's your name anyway, Sweet Stuff?"

Okay, this was getting out of control. I opened my mouth to tell him off when I felt an arm around my waist.

"She's taken, _buddy_." Mark growled. "And her name is 'Off Limits'!" Mark pulled me close to him, away from Pete.

"Sorry, man!" Pete said, "I didn't know." But he leaned down and whispered into my ear.

"If you change your mind, Beautiful, we'll be at the bar around midnight…" His alcohol-soaked breath nearly overwhelmed me.

Fat chance. I turned away from Pete, only to realize that I was pressing my face against Mark's chest. He kept his arm around my waist.

"Are you all right?" he asked in a concerned tone.

"Yes…" I said softly, looking up at him. In the crowded bus, and with Mark pulling my body toward him, our lips were _thisclose_. I swallowed hard, thinking about what it would be like to kiss him. _Really_ kiss him, not those pecks on the cheek I got for my birthday or under the mistletoe.

"I'm fine." I said, trying desperately to get all thoughts of kissing out of my head. "Thanks…"

"You're welcome." Mark smiled at me.

I was glad that his arm was still around me, because suddenly my knees turned to jelly.

We spent the remainder of the bus ride in a semi-awkward silence, but Mark kept his arm around me, occasionally glaring at Pete. Whatever his motives, I enjoyed the feel of his body next to mine.

As we disembarked from the bus, we saw Pete heading off with a group of other guys. Mark pulled away from me and went to collect our luggage.

Well, it had been nice while it lasted. For a couple of minutes there, I had _almost_ felt like Mark's girl.

"I, uh…"

I turned around to look at Mark holding our bags behind me, attempting to speak.

"I thought… " he mumbled, "I mean… I know that you and Keyop planned on rooming together, but I figured… under the circumstances… I… I booked another room, for me."

"Oh." I replied, disappointed. But then, what had I expected? It wasn't like Mark was suddenly going to throw off his dutiful Commander routine and spend the night with me.

"I'll meet you for dinner in a couple of hours, okay?" he said, after we had checked in. It wasn't so much a request, as a statement.

I nodded.

"Okay, Mark. Whatever you want."

Walking up the stairs to my room, I didn't feel like this was a vacation at all. It was just going to be one big disappointment after another. So much for rest and relaxation.

I dropped my bag on the floor in front of my door as I put the key into the lock. I was so wrapped up in my own thoughts that I jumped when I heard a man's voice in my ear.

"Sure took you long enough to get here!"

Pete. The guy just didn't get the hint!

I whirled around, hand at the ready for a neck strike, when my wrist was caught in a strong grip. I looked angrily up into a pair of grey-blue eyes.

Jason!

"What are you doing here?" I asked, relieved. I hadn't really been in the mood for more of Pete's unwanted advances.

"I decided that a week of skiing might be fun." he drawled. "And Tiny told me that you were going to be here, so I convinced him to fly me up in the Phoenix to surprise you. He said that you'd already booked a room and lift tickets for two, since Keyop was supposed to be with you, and I didn't want them to go to waste." He had a mischievous gleam in his eyes.

"Just like you to take the free ride." I teased him. "But believe it or not, I'm glad you're here. My place is yours!" I opened the door to the room and gestured inside.

It suddenly occurred to me what I had just said. Jason had quite a reputation with women, and I had just invited him to stay in the same room with me. I felt my cheeks flush.

"Uh… I meant…" I was flustered.

"I know what you meant." Jason replied, with a sly wink. It was as if he could read my thoughts, but was trying to convince me that deep down I really _had_ intended something else with my invitation.

"I'll take the bed closest to the bathroom." I stated firmly, trying to draw the line now. "You can take that one over there.'

"Whatever you say, Prin." he grinned. "So what have you got planned for the rest of the afternoon?"

"Not much." I shrugged. "I thought I might take a nap before dinner. There's not really enough time to hit the slopes before then."

"A nap?" Jason rolled his eyes. "I can see that you are in _desperate_ need of help. You have an urgent need for fun. And I'm just the guy to help you out!"

"So what do you say, Prin?" he challenged, a mocking look in his eyes, "Shall we go have some fun?" He held his hand out to me.

Now I was the one wondering what _exactly_ he was offering. It did cross my mind that whatever it was, I was sure to have a good time. Jason was always able to make me laugh, and relax.

Once or twice, I had even wondered what it might be like to go out with him. The girls at Jill's were head over heels for Jason, and I had been privy to quite a bit of girl-talk about his nocturnal activities. Apparently he was one hot Condor under the sheets.

I blushed again, just thinking about it. I really shouldn't have let my mind wander there. It was just that… Jason oozed confidence, and made me feel attractive, even if he wasn't really interested. Whereas Mark… I was head over heels for the guy, yet we just never seemed to click.

I made up my mind.

"You're on, Condor!" I said, smiling back and placing my hand in his. "What did you have in mind?"

"Just wait and see…" he grinned, tossing me my ski jacket as he pulled me out of the room.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Apparently what Jason had in mind was snowmobiling. I had never driven an actual snowmobile before, but of course my Galacticycle was equipped for the snow, and I found it very much the same. Jason, being an expert at controlling any land-based vehicle, was just as comfortable as I was, and soon we found ourselves whizzing through a snow-covered forest on the snowmobile trail.

Jason brought his vehicle to a stop and motioned for me to pull over as well. I did, taking off my helmet for a breath of fresh air. I shook out my hair to get rid of the static that always seems to build up in these things.

"What's wrong?" I asked. "Are you running out of gas?"

"Not at all." Jason replied. "I just had an idea…"

"What did you have in mind?" I asked.

Then, on impulse I added, "Whatever it is, I'm game."

I had no idea why I had said that. Maybe I'd just been having so much fun that I knew whatever he was thinking would be just as enjoyable. Or maybe I just needed to do something wild and crazy to get my mind off of that miserable transport flight with Mark.

Uncharacteristically, Jason was taken aback for a moment. Perhaps my immediate acquiescence had stunned him.

"I was thinking that it might be fun to head off of the trail." he gestured over his back with his thumb. "You know, virgin territory and all that."

"Sure…" I grinned. "This trail is kind of dull anyhow."

I replaced my helmet, then took off before Jason could react.

Of course, the Condor was a professional racecar driver. He could _never_ settle for second place. He took off after me, and I knew I would have to pull out all of the stops to stay ahead of him.

The only advantages I had over Jason were that I was smaller and lighter, and that I had more experience on a motorcycle-style vehicle than he did. He was a better overall driver, and more willing to take risks, so I had to use the little I had.

I decided to dodge between the trees. Of course, Jason easily kept up. But when I got close to a large evergreen, I spun around and drove under a low-hanging branch, ducking out of the way in the nick of time.

As I had hoped, Jason was just a little too tall to take that path, and he knew it. He had to go around the tree, which gained me a few more seconds of lead. I laughed in exhilaration. I couldn't believe how much I was enjoying this.

I was finally starting to think that this vacation might be fun after all.

Of course, as soon as that thought crossed my mind, my runners skidded on what appeared to be an ice-covered root. It was hidden under the snow and I hadn't seen it until it was too late. Unfortunately, the ice patch was bigger than just that area, and suddenly I was doing donuts in the middle of a small clearing, despite stepping off the gas and pumping the brakes.

I was utterly out of control and I couldn't see anything in the whirling whiteness of blowing snow.

But I was laughing with excitement.

Until I hit that damn rock.

It was about four feet high, and looked like just another snow bank until I plowed into it. Ouch! Before I knew it, I was on the ground, and my leg hurt something fierce.

Still… it had been worth it. I couldn't remember the last time I had felt so carefree.

"Princess!" Jason cried, running over to me while tossing his helmet aside.

Strange, I had almost forgotten that he was there. But it was thanks to Jason that I had been doing this in the first place.

"Hi, Jason!" I giggled. "Fancy meeting you in a place like this!" I couldn't stop laughing at my own joke.

"Damn, I think you're in shock or something…" Jason looked really concerned.

"No…" I stopped laughing, but I was still smiling. "I'm just having fun…"

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked. He sounded like he didn't believe that I was fine.

"Yeah, everything seems to be in order." I said, removing my helmet and sitting up. But when I tried to move my leg, I winced.

"You're hurt!" Jason exclaimed. "I'm so sorry, Prin… it was my dumb idea to go off trail."

"It was _not_ a dumb idea." I retorted. "It was fun, and _you_ would still be having fun if I hadn't been careless enough not to watch where I was going."

"Well, dumb or not, you're hurt." Jason said.

"It's nothing worse than what I usually sustain on a day to day basis." I replied. "In fact, it's feeling better already!" I bent my leg slightly to prove it. It _was_ feeling better, but not much. I knew from experience that I'd have to stay still for a moment and let it recover for a few minutes so my cerebonics could do their thing.

"All the same, we'd better go back to the lodge." Jason said.

"No… I just need to sit for a bit." I protested. "Besides, it's so beautiful here… I don't want to go back just yet."

It _was_ beautiful. There was a light snowfall, and the trees created a green canopy above our heads. And now that our snowmobiles were off, it was quiet.

It was as if we were the only two people in the world.

Impulsively, I grabbed Jason's hand.

"Just stay here with me, Jason. Just for a minute." I pleaded.

He looked at me for a long moment before acquiescing.

"All right." he sighed. "As long as you're not too cold."

"Just a little." I replied in a small voice.

"Whatever am I going to do with you, Princess?" Jason grinned as he sat down and put his arm around me. It _was_ much warmer sharing our body heat.

"Thanks for coming here, Jason." I said, putting my head on his shoulder. "I really appreciate that you were willing to keep me company this week."

"It was hardly a difficult decision." Jason joked. "It was either skiing with you, or hanging out with Zark… hmmm… you may have a point there…"

"Tease!" I cried, mock punching him in the chest.

"You're right." he said, suddenly serious. "You're _much_ better company than Zark."

I looked up at him. There was something in his eyes. I couldn't quite define it, but suddenly I felt… desired.

Okay, I knew that had to be wrong… but the feeling persisted. And Jason just kept looking at me with that intense gaze…

Who knew what might have happened if that pile of snow hadn't suddenly slid off of a branch above us and landed on our heads? In an instant we were shivering and shaking wet snow off of our heads.

"Okay… I think that's our signal to go." I laughed. I flexed my leg. It was feeling much better.

"Can you drive back to the lodge?" Jason asked.

"Yeah…" I answered, standing gingerly. "I should be fine."

This time I went slowly and Jason followed me to make sure that there were no further mishaps. It was actually slightly embarrassing, but also kind of nice… it made me feel good to know that someone cared about me that much, even if he was just my brother.

But of course, Jason wasn't _really_ my brother, any more than Mark was.

We returned the snowmobiles and helmets. When Jason finally turned to look at me, he laughed.

"What?" I demanded, my hands on my hips. "What, pray tell, is so funny?"

Jason just pointed at my head and continued laughing.

Cautiously, I reached up and felt something strange. Pulling it down, I realized that it was a bunch of wet leaves. I guess my hair had been so soaked that I hadn't noticed them before putting my helmet back on.

I began to giggle, Jason's laughter at the look on my face only fueling my own amusement.

"I didn't realize that Swans built nests out of leaves!" Jason gasped. "The things I learn, hanging out with you, Prin…"

"Hey, we're resourceful!" I replied. "We just use whatever's handy!"

We both burst into a fit of giggles again. Jason threw an arm around me, and I grabbed his waist as we supported each other in our amusement.

We were still cracking pathetic jokes as we walked into the lodge. There, in the lobby, next to a giant fireplace, was Mark.

Damn, I _knew_ I'd forgotten to mention something to Jason.

Mark didn't look too happy when he saw me. I guessed that I looked like a mess with my drippy, wet hair, and leaf embellishments to boot. Besides that, my jeans were soaked from sitting in the snow so long.

"Mark!" I said, smiling, "Look who showed up! Tiny dropped him off before going to Aquatica."

"Hello, Jason." said Mark coldly.

"Hiya, Skip." Jason grinned. "Fancy meeting you here."

Jason squeezed my shoulder.

I had forgotten that he still had his arm around me.

"I'm sorry, Mark." I said, hanging my head. "I know we were going to meet for dinner. But would you mind if I ran upstairs and changed quickly?" I knew how punctual Mark usually was, and how it irritated him if others were late. We hadn't set a specific time or anything, but I had been out with Jason much longer than I had planned.

"Sure, Princess." Mark said. "While you're gone, Jason and I can hang out here."

"Why not?" Jason grinned, flopping down in a chair. As I turned to leave, he spoke.

"Hey, Prin, bring my jacket up to the room, will you?" he said as he tossed it to me.

"Sure." I mumbled, practically running out of the lobby.

It wasn't until I was back to our room that I realized what he had said.

Jason had basically told Mark that we were rooming together.

What would Mark think? I had _really_ made a mess of things.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

I got dressed as quickly as I could. Fortunately, since this was a vacation I had actually included a few non-transmuting clothing items in my bag. After giving my hair a quick blow-dry (fortunately there were no more leaves in there) I pulled a crimson slip dress over my head, and stockings on my feet, before stepping into my heels and running back out the door.

Just as I was leaving, I thought about makeup. I wasn't used to wearing it, but this was _kind of_ a date with Mark. It wouldn't hurt to look nice. Another minute couldn't hurt, especially since he had Jason to keep him company.

I quickly put on some blush, lipstick and mascara.

Wow. It was amazing what a little bit of makeup could do for a girl. Maybe I should start wearing this stuff every day!

Well, I was as ready as I was going to be.

I took a deep breath, and walked into the lobby.

Mark and Jason were still sitting by the fireplace. As I approached them, Mark looked up and was staring at me. Hey, maybe that makeup hadn't been such a bad idea, after all!

When I reached the fireplace, Jason turned and saw me as well. He gave me a slow grin that sent butterflies through my stomach.

Mark stood up and took my hand in his. I couldn't help the blush that came over my face, but I hoped that it wasn't so visible in the flickering firelight.

"Princess… you look…" he began.

"You look fantastic!" interrupted Jason, "Just like… a princess." he winked.

"Yes. She does." Mark agreed, but there was a flat tone to his voice. It made me wonder what I had done wrong. Maybe he thought I was neglecting my duties by being out of uniform.

"I'm sorry…" I muttered, "My clothes were still wet…"

Neither Mark nor Jason seemed to hear me. They were staring at each other, in a silent understanding.

I didn't know what was going on, but I felt my heart sink. I knew that Mark and Jason were good friends. They probably wanted to hang out together. Maybe they would go to the bar and hang out with Pete. All I could do was get in their way.

Mark turned to me.

"Let's go grab some dinner, Princess." he said, gently pulling my hand.

"But what about Jason?" I asked. "I'm sure he's hungry too."

"Thanks, Prin." Jason grinned. "I'd _love_ to join you for dinner." He stood up and linked his arm through my free one.

Maybe I'd been wrong about them wanting to hang out without me. In fact, for a moment, it almost felt like I was in a tug of war. Mark was holding one of my hands, and Jason had my other arm. But only for a moment.

"I guess we should go to the restaurant, then?" I asked.

"Great idea." Mark replied, linking his arm through mine.

When we got to the table, Jason rushed to pull out my chair for me.

"Oh, Jase, you don't have to do that!" I smiled. "I can take care of myself."

"She certainly can." Mark muttered.

I wondered what had gotten into him. Here I had been hoping for a chance to smooth things over between us and he had become even more distant. He almost seemed… angry.

What had I done to make him angry?

"A beautiful lady deserves to be treated with respect." said Jason, glaring at Mark.

Thank goodness for Jase! He was obviously going to save me from a night of uncomfortable conversation and awkward silences. Maybe he could get Mark to change his attitude a bit. If _anyone_ could get people to loosen up, it was Jason. Look at how much fun we'd had this afternoon.

"Thank you, Jason." I said, smiling at him. "That's very sweet of you to say."

"So… what should we order?" I asked my companions, perusing the menu. "Hmmm…. how about, steak?" I winked at Mark. I knew that steak was one of his favorites.

Wonder of wonders, Mark's mood seemed to lighten, and he smiled at me.

"You know me so well, Princess." he said softly, his big, blue eyes looking into mine. My breath caught in my throat. He was so beautiful… that smile had my heart doing somersaults.

"Did it ever occur to you," I smiled back, "that maybe steak is my favorite too?"

Was I imagining it, or did that spark a connection between us? Steak? Hey, I was willing to go with whatever worked. As long as Mark kept smiling at me like that…

"I prefer Italian, myself." Jason said. "How about a nice chicken carbonara?"

I had almost forgotten that the Condor was with us. Amazing what a look from Mark could accomplish.

"Ummm… if I'm going to have Italian food, I think it should be spaghetti." I replied, as I mimed throwing a forkful at Jason.

Mark actually laughed at that. He had obviously caught my reference to a food fight we had had a few years ago, before G-Force was really in operation. He and I had completely pasted Jason.

"I don't think so, Prin," Jason said, looking me over, "I think that dress of yours looks great the way it is. I wouldn't want to get any tomato sauce on it."

"What makes you think _I_ would get dirty?" I demanded. "You got beaten pretty badly last time."

"Only because you had help."

"I have help this time!" I protested. "Mark is on _my_ side." I turned toward the Eagle. "Aren't you, Mark?"

"Anything to show this guy who's boss." grinned Mark.

"See?" I said, triumphantly. "You're one dead bird, Condor."

Jason put his hands up in mock surrender.

"Well then, I guess I should stick with the carbonara." he said.

"I'm going for the steak." I put in. "What about you, Mark?"

"I'm having the steak too." he replied. "You have excellent taste, Princess." As he spoke, he gave me one of those slow smiles I dreamed about, and reached for my hand under the tablecloth, giving my fingers a quick squeeze.

Wait a minute… was this really happening? I _must_ have interpreted his signals incorrectly. Mark would _never_ be that forward with me.

But I didn't care. I wanted to believe that Mark might be interested, so I let myself fantasize a bit.

I knew I was grinning like an idiot, but somehow, at this moment, it didn't bother me.

The conversation turned to skiing, and which trails and lifts would be best for action, and for scenery. As we were talking, suddenly I felt something on my leg. It slid softly up and down my calf.

Mark was playing footsie with me!

It was a difficult struggle to keep a straight face, but I did the best I could to stay in the conversation. This was so unlike Mark, but it was certainly fun.

The Mark excused himself to go to the men's room. He stood up and walked away from the table.

But the gentle movement on my legs didn't stop.

The color drained from my face. I turned to look at Jason, who was sitting with his chin in his hand, staring at me in utter amusement.

"That… that was you?" I stuttered in amazement.

"What was me?" Jason asked innocently. But the soft caresses on my calves continued, and I knew that Jason was practiced enough at shifting suspicion that he could make a choirboy seem guilty.

"I think you know…" I said quietly.

"So you _actually_ thought it was Mark?" he asked. There was a dangerous tone to his voice that I couldn't quite place. "It's not really his style."

"Yes… no… I…" I turned bright red in confusion and embarrassment. I just didn't know how to respond to that.

And all this time, I still felt that soft touch on my legs. Only now, it felt different. It was no longer gentle, it was… teasing.

I gasped, and pulled my legs as far away from Jason as I could.

"That's not funny!" I cried, nearly in tears.

Jason's face immediately took on an apologetic look.

"Hey, Prin, I didn't mean…"

"Just stop it!" I interrupted. "I'm not really interested in your games, Jason. I'm sorry there isn't some ditzy, little blonde here at the table to amuse you. That's more _your_ style, isn't it?" That was a bit harsh, but I was pretty angry.

"Maybe, I'm tired of ditzy, little blondes." Jason said, with a serious gaze, as if he were gauging my reaction.

He paused, then continued.

"They all turn out to be Spectrans anyhow." he winked. His serious mood had returned to his usual sardonic one.

But I felt as if I'd disappointed him, somehow.

I didn't really understand what he was thinking, but I could see that he had been reaching out to me. And I wanted to be there for him, if he was going through some kind of emotional turmoil.

I took one of his hands in both of mine and looked him straight in the eye.

"It's okay, Jase." I said softly. "There's someone out there for you. Someone who'll make you happy."

His response was so quiet that I could barely make out the words. But it sounded like…

"Maybe, I've already found her."

My heart started beating incredibly fast. Had Jason just said what I _thought_ he had said? No… I obviously hadn't heard him right.

We both heard a noise, and we looked up to see Mark glaring at the two of us.

"What is going on here?" he asked.

Oh, no.

Mark was looking at my hands holding Jason's, and with a sudden burst of clarity I knew what he was thinking.

He thought that I was coming on to Jason.

I pulled my hands away as if they were on fire.

"M… Mark…" I stuttered, "It's not what it looks like…"

"And what _does_ it look like?" he asked me. He had his Eagle face on. It was the kind of look he reserved for interrogating Spectran goons. And it had the same effect on me, that it did on them.

I was shaking in fear.

But before I could speak, Jason stood up and confronted Mark.

"Give her a break, man!" he shouted. "We were just talking!"

Mark seemed incensed. He got right into Jason's face.

"You seem pretty defensive for a guy who was just 'talking'." he growled.

I didn't know what was going on, but it looked like there was a lot more than I was aware of. Mark and Jason were obviously having some kind of issues.

I stood up too.

"Look, guys," I said in a quiet voice, trying to diffuse the situation, "I'm not sure what's going on between you, but this needs to be worked out… _now_. Whatever it is can't just be allowed to fester. We would never be able to work as a team."

They both looked at me with unreadable expressions on their faces. I just hoped that they agreed with what I was saying.

"I think I should leave you guys alone, to figure this out." I continued. "I'll see you both in the morning, and by that time you both had _better_ have worked this out." I threatened.

And with that, I turned and left the restaurant.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

I awoke to find that it was morning. Opening my eyes, I saw Jason stretched out on the other bed, dead to the world. I must have been really out of it the night before, because I hadn't even heard him come in.

Quietly, I snuck into the bathroom, grabbing my bag. I went through my morning routine and put on my new ski outfit.

It was a thing of beauty. Since I had been planning this trip for awhile, I had requested the clothing from Chief Anderson a couple of months ago. The lab had based the outfit on my motorcycle racing garb, only they had made it warmer and waterproof.

So here I stood in my dusky lavender one-piece ski-suit, checking out my reflection in the mirror. The suit hugged my curves in all the right places and brought out the color in my cheeks. And it transmuted too. What more could a girl ask for?

Mark _had_ to notice me in this.

_If_ he still wanted to go skiing. I remembered the tension between him and Jason the night before. I hoped that they had been able to work things out, if only so I could spend time with Mark on the slopes.

As I crept back into the room, I noticed Jason stirring.

"Turn off the light, Prin…" he mumbled, shielding his eyes with his hand.

"I can't." I replied.

"Why the hell not?"

"It's the suns. They're both up, and you should be too." I said smugly.

"Ow… what time is it, anyhow?" Jason grunted.

"Eight o'clock." I answered. "The lifts open in an hour."

"Ugh.. too early… let's go back to sleep…" he muttered, rolling over.

"You can if you want." I replied, "But I want to be on the mountain when the lifts open. I'm not missing the best skiing of the day because _you_ stayed up too late drinking at the bar."

"How did you know?" Jason groaned.

"I know _you_, Jason." I said. "Sometimes, I think I know you better than anyone."

_That_ got him to open his eyes. I guess the idea of an omniscient Swan frightened him.

"Okay, okay, I'll get up…" he sighed, sitting up. The sheet fell down to reveal his shirtless chest. It certainly wasn't a bad sight to wake up to.

Hey… my heart may have belonged to Mark, but I could still appreciate a fine-looking male.

Jason blinked at me with bleary eyes that nearly popped out of his skull when he saw what I was wearing.

Score! If Jason noticed, then Mark was sure to notice as well.

"Wow… Prin…" he grinned, "When did you become a hot ski bunny?"

"When I asked the Chief to have the lab make me a ski outfit." I grinned back. "You like?" I twirled around so he could get the full effect.

"Definitely…" there was a wicked gleam in his eyes. "Just seeing you like that makes me want to hit the slopes with you right now."

"Well, then, you had better get ready, hadn't you?" I prodded. Then a thought occurred to me.

"Jason… you and Mark… you worked out your problems last night, didn't you?" I asked.

"Yeah." replied Jason, rubbing his face. "We won't be arguing today. For at least the first hour or so…" he winked at me.

"You, men!" I sighed, as I picked up a pillow and threw it at him.

That was a big mistake of course, because Jason immediately picked up a pillow and threw it at me, which degenerated into a fast and dirty fight. I started bashing him with the closest pillow, and he did the same.

Suddenly, he grabbed my arm and tossed me onto the bed, using the advantage of his higher position to attack. I nimbly slipped out from under him and began my own counter-attack, until we both had each other pinned on his bed. We held still for a moment, both of us breathing hard. And suddenly I realized something I hadn't before, in the flurry of sheets and pillows.

Jason wasn't wearing any clothes!

I felt heat searing my cheeks as it dawned on me what kind of compromising position we were in. Jason smiled wickedly at me, and his eyes seemed to issue a challenge.

For just a second, I was tempted. I remembered what the girls at Jill's had said, and my curiosity was piqued.

But… I didn't have any feelings for Jason…

At that instant, I doubted that too.

No… I wasn't thinking straight. Desperately trying to extricate myself from the situation, I glanced at the time.

"Eight-thirty!" I cried, "Jason, we need to get downstairs if we want to have any breakfast!"

"I know… you just don't want to admit defeat." he declared, brandishing another pillow. But somehow, I think he meant more than just the pillow fight.

"Stuff it, Jason!" I threatened, holding up my own ammo and ignoring any other implications in his words. "I'm going to get downstairs and grab some food. Do you think you can manage to meet me before nine am?"

"Yeah." he grinned. "I'll be there."

"I'm going to hold you to that!" I promised as I left the room.

I calmed my breathing, and quickly straightened my hair, as I walked downstairs to the lobby. There was a little café there that I was planning on getting some breakfast from.

And, of course, I was also hoping that I might run into Mark. It wouldn't do to be thinking of Jason's… attributes… while I was with him.

I got my second chance. I entered the café to see Mark stretched out at a table. He didn't notice me, so I snuck up behind him and put my hands over his eyes, whispering into his ear.

"Guess who?"

Okay, so it wasn't the most original approach, but I was feeling silly and mischievous from the pillow fight with Jason, and I was in an optimistic mood for a change.

Mark turned to look at me.

"Princess!" he smiled. "I was hoping to run into you here."

"You were?" I asked. Things really _were_ looking up, then. "And here, I thought you were hoping for a visit from Zoltar."

"Seeing you is _slightly_ better." he laughed. Then he stared at me.

"What is that you're wearing, Princess?" he asked in a surprised voice.

Oh, no. He was upset to see me out of civvies again.

"It's my new ski outfit." I explained. "The Chief had it made for me in the lab."

"I see…" Mark said, "Well, he certainly has good taste."

It was hardly the reaction I had gotten from Jason, but from Mark it was as flattering a comment as I was likely to get.

"You think so?" I was fishing for a compliment, and he knew it.

"You look great, Princess." he smiled.

That worked for me! I preened.

"I guess I should go get some food." I said reluctantly. "The lifts open in twenty minutes."

"I'll be waiting for you." Mark smiled again.

Wow. This day just couldn't get any better.

When I returned, Mark raised an eyebrow at the amount of food on my tray.

"I didn't think you were that hungry, Princess." he remarked.

"Oh, it's not all for me." I said. "I figured Jason would want something when he came down."

"Oh." Somehow, Mark seemed disappointed, but I wasn't sure what I'd done wrong.

"You were right about that." Jason said, coming up to the table. "I'm starving! Thanks Prin!"

He grabbed an English muffin and began to pile scrambled eggs and cheese between the slices.

"Good morning, Jason." Mark said politely. "Did you get much sleep?"

"A couple of hours." Jason replied. "It's all I needed. Especially with this hot ski bunny waking me up."

"I thought we established that it was the _suns_ that woke you up?" I giggled.

Mark had a strange look on his face. Not again! And things had been going so well between us.

"Look, Mark." I said, cutting to the chase, "Jason said that you two worked out your issues last night."

"Yeah, we did." Mark replied.

"Good. Then I won't have to play referee again on the slopes this morning?"

"No." Mark promised. "We'll behave ourselves. Won't we, Jason?"

"As far as you know…" Jason winked.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The view was incredible.

What I had heard was true. This _was_ more beautiful than the Alps. I was spellbound by the snow-covered panorama in front of me.

"It's gorgeous…" I breathed.

"So are you." whispered Jason in my ear. I blushed.

I turned to respond, but the Condor was already skiing off toward a trail marker. Stinker. He just liked to play these mind games with me.

I looked at Mark, who was just as entranced by the view as I was.

"Wow…" he said quietly.

"Just what I was thinking." I smiled at him.

"I'm glad we were up early to see this, before the crowds of people." Mark said.

"I'm glad _someone_ sees my point of view." I replied. "You wouldn't believe how much convincing it took to get Jason out of bed this morning."

"Well, it looks like he's off to a roaring start now." Mark observed, watching the Condor expertly cutting through the snow toward the marker. "Why don't we just take this trail over here and meet him at the bottom?"

"Sounds good to me." I grinned. Skiing alone with Mark was what I had dreamed about last night.

Laughing, I took off for the trail, and I could hear Mark close behind. I allowed him to pass me, then let out a long, slow whistle as I admired his form. The Eagle truly was poetry in motion.

He stopped and waited for me at a plateau on the hill.

"What took you so long?" he grinned.

"Just admiring the view." I winked.

I wasn't sure, but I could have sworn that _maybe_ Mark was blushing. Or maybe it was just the cold. But whatever it was, my heart was singing, and I flew down the slopes. We encountered a section with moguls, which required a little more concentration on my part, but I was rewarded when we were waiting in line for the lift again and Mark turned to me.

"You were looking very good out there." he said. "You haven't lost any of your skill."

Now _I_ was blushing.

"Thanks." I smiled. "You weren't looking too bad yourself."

When we got on the lift, Mark held my hand. I didn't need the assistance, but I certainly didn't protest. And when we were settled, he didn't let go. He held my hand the whole way up the mountain. Of course, it might have been nicer if we both hadn't been wearing gloves, but I took what I could get.

We managed to get in three more runs before encountering Jason again. He was just joining the lift line as we reached the bottom.

"Where have you guys been?" he hailed us. "I lost you on the first run and have been looking for you ever since."

"We've just been going down the trails." I smiled, looking at Mark. "Having fun. You know… _skiing_."

"I see…" Jason replied. I wasn't paying too much attention, but his voice sounded a bit strange. I didn't care. Mark had been smiling at me and holding my hand all morning. I was floating on Cloud Nine.

When we got to the front of the lift line, Jason grabbed my hand and pulled me up with him. Since the seats only held two people, Mark was left behind to take the next chair.

"That wasn't very nice." I chided Jason, turning back to look at Mark standing alone on the snow as we were lifted up into the air.

"Well, it wasn't very nice of him to monopolize your charming company all morning, now was it?" Jason retorted with a grin, as he put his arm around me.

"Lest you forget, _you_ were the one that ran off on _us_." I pointed out, snuggling closer. A cold wind had picked up, and I was starting to get a bit chilly.

"Which trails did you try?" Jason asked, his mouth close to my ear.

"Those Black Diamonds, over there." I pointed.

"Is that all?" Jason grinned. "I think you need to try something more adventurous, my dear."

"Oh, really?" I turned to look at him. He face was close to mine, and I could see my reflection in his ski goggles. My eyes were sparkling with excitement. Jason always knew how to have fun, and I _was_ ready for a bit more of a challenge.

"What did you have in mind?" I asked.

"Well, there's the half-pipe over there…"

"Uh… no." I stated firmly. "That's full of snowboarders, and I don't think they'd appreciate a couple of skiers invading their turf."

"Okay. Maybe, tomorrow we should try out some boarding, then." Jason suggested.

"That's not a bad idea." I mused. "I've always wanted to try that out."

"Okay, then. It's a date." he grinned.

"Just be sure to stay with me." I warned. "I've never been on a snowboard, and somehow, I suspect that you are an expert."

"What makes you say that?" he asked, a quizzical tone to his voice.

"Well, I know you, Jason, and extreme sports are right up your alley." I explained. "I suspect that you'll take right to it."

"I promise not to leave you behind." he said softly.

"I'll hold you to that!" I replied, smiling.

The departure point for the lift was fast approaching, and Jason pointed to a trail marker.

"Let's go over that way."

"Okay." I agreed, waving my ski pole at Mark to indicate which way we were going. But his chair was about twenty seconds behind ours, and I didn't know if he saw me.

As we got off, Jason pulled me toward the marker, while I frantically tried to wave to Mark.

But Jason didn't want to wait.

"Let's go!" he urged, and before I knew it, we were whizzing down the mountain, hand in hand.

I glanced over at Jason and liked what I saw. His golden-brown hair was flying in the wind, and his face had a look of exhilaration on it as he concentrated on the task at hand. He certainly knew how to get the most out of life.

Maybe there was something to his whole adventurous attitude.

After a minute, Jason let go of my hand and took off in front of me. Then he turned around and began skiing backward, grinning up at me, and taunting me to catch up to him.

Whenever I did, he immediately zoomed away again, still skiing backward. It was pretty evident that Jason was way out of my league.

And yet, he didn't make me feel like I was holding him back… only that _my_ presence was making the whole experience more enjoyable for him.

It was certainly a nice sensation… to feel like he was having a better time because _I _was there. It was weird. I had always thought of Jason as something of a loner, but this, and his comment at dinner the night before, made me think that he was more in need of companionship than he liked to admit.

When we reached the bottom of the mountain I looked for Mark, but couldn't see him. I felt really badly that I had ditched him, even if it was somewhat unwillingly. I kept turning my head, searching for him, even as Jason and I were standing in line at the lift again.

"Is my company not good enough for you?" Jason asked.

"Huh?"

"You keep looking around." he observed.

"I'm just looking for Mark." I replied. "I feel terrible that we just ditched him like that."

"Don't feel sorry for the Eagle." Jason whispered to me. "He's been ditching you for years. It's time he had a taste of his own medicine."

I looked at Jason, aghast.

"I can't believe you just said that, Jason." I lectured him.

"But you can't deny it." Jason replied, unruffled. "Why berate me for just speaking the truth?"

He had something of a point. Mark _had_ been ignoring me for years, while I had been following him around like a love-sick puppy. A morning of holding hands on the ski lift couldn't erase that.

Could it?

Oh, how I wanted it to.

This time, riding up the lift, I was lost in thought, barely noticing when Jason put his arm around me again. If anything, it had gotten even colder since our last ride up, and his physical closeness was much appreciated.

But I couldn't stop thinking about Mark, and what Jason had said. The bottom line was, if Mark actually _was_ interested, I wanted to go for it.

But _was_ he? If I wanted to be critical, nothing that had happened this morning necessarily indicated any kind of non-brotherly interest. I needed more.

I needed to _know_.

But how could I find out?

By this time, we had reached the top of the mountain. Standing right next to the lift was Mark. He was obviously waiting for us.

"What are you doing here, Skip?" Jason scowled as we disembarked.

"Waiting for you, of course." Mark replied. He was speaking to Jason, but he was looking at me.

My emotions were thrown around again, with my heart beating fast as the thought entered my mind.

He was waiting for _me_.

"Well, here we are." Jason answered. "Which trail did you want to use?"

"Actually," Mark replied, "I thought it might be time to grab some lunch." He pointed toward the snack bar. "I know Princess and I had a pretty exhausting morning."

And then, Mark winked at me.

My pulse raced. Mark was sharing a private joke with me. I gave him a slow smile in return.

"I'm so sorry we left without you, before, Mark." I said. "Going down the mountain wasn't the same without you."

"That's okay, Princess." Mark replied. "It gave me a chance to enjoy the scenery." He reached for my hand, and led me off for some lunch.

We stuck our skis and poles in the snow outside the snack bar, then trooped inside for some food.

I had expected to see a big crowd of people. It was one o'clock after all, and should be the height of the lunch rush. But there were only a few other skiers inside.

"Where is everyone?" I asked.

"I don't know." replied Jason, with a concerned look.

A passing busboy heard my query.

"It's the weather." he offered. "There's a big storm coming up, and they're recommending that everyone go back to the lodge."

Darn. So much for spending more time on the slopes alone with Mark. Of course, as soon as I thought about going back to the lodge, visions of Mark and me snuggling in front of a warm fire danced through my head.

"So, do you think we should go back?" Jason asked me.

"Huh?" I had been daydreaming so much I hadn't been paying attention to the conversation.

"Go back. Or do you want to stay out?" Jason repeated.

I looked at Mark, whose face was a mask of concern.

"I think we can grab a quick lunch, then go back." I said.

"Alright." Jason agreed.

We hastily ate some space burgers and fries, then made our way outside. It looked bright and sunny. The news of an impending storm seemed like it had to be a joke.

Still, I knew how quickly storms could come up in the mountains, particularly on Frozatica.

"Let's just go back this way." Mark suggested. He pointed at the easiest trail, a blue, that went straight down the mountain.

"Are you nuts?" Jason scoffed. "If this is the last run of the day, we should make the most of it. Let's head over to the Double Diamond run."

"That's pretty difficult terrain, Jason." Mark stated. "And there's no marked trail."

"So? Too _difficult_ for you, Commander?" Jason taunted.

"No." Mark stated. "I just think we should get back to the lodge as quickly as possible."

"I agree with Mark." I said quickly. "Let's just get back. Who knows when this storm will hit?"

Jason looked disappointed, but with two against one, he acquiesced.

We started off down the blue trail, easily taking the few twists and turns it offered. At one point, it got close to a forested area. I started to veer away from the trees, when suddenly Jason grabbed my arm and piloted me into the forest.

"Jason! What are you doing?" I gasped.

"Just having a bit of fun." he replied, grinning at me.

Taking a quick look over my shoulder, I saw Mark right behind us. It made me feel better to know that he was there.

It was at that moment that I heard a deep rumble.

"What is that?" I asked Jason.

Jason pulled us both to a stop and listened for a moment. Mark came up behind us.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he raged at Jason.

"Shh!" Jason replied angrily. "Don't you hear that?"

We all stood in silence for a moment, listening. The muted rumble was getting louder.

I looked up into Mark's eyes, both of us recognizing the source of the sound at the same moment.

"Avalanche!" shouted Mark.

I panicked, looking wildly to Mark for guidance.

"Listen to me, Princess." Mark said quickly, but firmly. "We are all going to link arms, and get out of here as quickly as possible. Don't let go. We don't want to become separated."

I nodded quickly, and Mark and Jason each took one of my arms as we moved off again down the mountain.

We found our way back to the blue trail, which was devoid of life.

We were the only people still out here.

I had never skied so fast before in my life, but it wasn't fast enough.

The rumble surged to a deafening roar, and before we knew it, the snow had overtaken us, knocking us to the ground.

"Mark!" I screamed, but before I could make any sound, my mouth was filled with snow.

My last thought, before everything went dark, was of Mark holding my hand.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Ow… my whole body ached. What had happened?

Flashes of memory raced through my mind…

_Racing down the mountain at a terrifying speed…_

_The avalanche overtaking us…_

_Trying to scream for Mark…_

_Jason hovering over me… his face an inch from mine…_

_Being wrapped in Mark's wings… held in his arms…_

_His voice whispering to me…_

"_Hang on, Princess… don't leave me…"_

I opened my eyes.

I was in some kind of cave. It was difficult to see. Why was it so dark?

"Hey… welcome back." a quiet voice said in my ear.

I turned slightly to see Jason looking down at me, with an almost… tender expression.

Wow, I must have really scared him.

I realized that my head was on his chest, and I was leaning on his body. I was practically sitting on his lap, and he had enfolded me in his wings.

He had transmuted. Of course… I remembered Mark's wings around me too.

"What… what happened?" I asked.

Suddenly, Mark was at my side.

"Princess! It's great to see you awake." he said.

"Mark…" I smiled at him. At least if I had died, I had gone to Heaven.

"You really frightened us, Prin." Jason said in a strange tone. It was almost as if he was… lecturing me? He sounded a bit like Mark.

"When we pulled you out of the snow you… you were unconscious." Mark explained. "We weren't sure you were going to come out of it."

"I'm fine…" I said. "Just a little achy. It feels like I've spent an entire day fighting Spectran soldiers." I gave a weak smile.

"I'm pretty achy myself." Jason admitted.

Mark glared at him.

"Well, we got thrown around by that avalanche pretty badly." Jason explained.

"Can you stand, Princess?" Mark asked me. "We need to… figure out if you've got any broken bones."

"Okay…" I said, pulling myself up. I was a little shaky, but able to stand.

"Wow! It sure is cold in here!" I exclaimed. "Wings are definitely warmer!"

"Exactly what _I_ was saying." smirked Jason.

"Maybe you should transmute, Princess." suggested Mark.

"Oh… yeah…" Duh. Why hadn't I thought of that? "Trans… mute!"

Light flashed briefly, illuminating the cave. It wasn't that big, and most of the entrance appeared to be blocked with a thick packing of snow.

"That's a little better." I said, now wearing my Birdstyle. Of course, when they designed this stupid uniform they gave me bare arms and legs. I was the only member of the team to have exposed flesh (outside of our faces). Fortunately, my gloves and boots were long, and overall this was still warmer than the ski suit.

"Why is the entrance all blocked off?" I asked.

"The storm." Mark said, "It's pretty bad, and this way most of it stays out of here."

"Unfortunately, we couldn't find anything to start a fire with." Jason added. "Everything is soaked."

"And how far are we from the lodge?"

"Uncertain." Mark said. "The avalanche carried us pretty far away."

"Anyhow, we didn't have much time to look, with the storm getting worse." Jason explained. "We had to find shelter, fast. We can try to make it back to the lodge in the morning."

"How long was I out?" I asked. It sure sounded like they had done a lot.

"I'm not sure… a few hours." Mark answered. "It's almost night, now."

Now I could see why the guys had been scared I wouldn't wake up. That was a long time.

"Thanks for taking such good care of me." I smiled at Mark.

"Well, actually… it was Jason who did most of that." Mark said. He looked like it pained him to admit that.

I could understand that. As Commander, Mark always felt like he had to be able to handle anything, but the truth was that Jason and I were the only ones with any serious medical training.

"Thanks to you, too, Jason." I said, smiling at the Condor.

"I'd say… 'anytime'… but I don't want you _ever_ doing that again, Prin." Jason grinned. "Two injuries in two days are enough for me!"

"_Two_ injuries?" Mark asked in surprise. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, I fell off of my snowmobile yesterday, when Jason and I were fooling around." I explained. "It was nothing. My cerebonics fixed it up in no time."

"I see." said Mark. But his voice sounded slightly angry.

"Oh come on, Mark!" I cried, crossing my arms. "I'm not that much of a klutz! Like it's _my_ fault that the avalanche overtook us!"

"No, Princess." Mark replied in a cold voice. "It's not _your_ fault."

"Then lay off!" I said defensively, "Not everything goes the way _you_ plan it, you know."

"That's what _I _always say." Jason added smugly.

"And _you_ stop doing that, Jason." I said, whirling to face the Condor.

"What?" he asked in surprise.

"I'm not stupid." I replied. "I know how you like to push Mark's buttons, and it's not fair, especially when he's stressed out enough as it is."

"Okay… okay." he said, holding up his hands. "You have a point. But it's too cold to argue."

"True." I said, shivering in spite of myself. It was nearly pitch black now and it felt like the temperature was dropping by the second.

"Maybe we should all get closer… share body heat." Mark suggested.

"Huh?" Jason and I were both surprised by his suggestion. Wasn't this Mark, the poster boy for 'personal space'? 

"It's in the Survival Handbook." Mark shrugged. "Section 31."

"Uh huh…" Jason sounded skeptical, but I wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. If Mark wanted to share his body heat with me, I was all for it.

I sat down next to Jason, and Mark sat on my other side. It was getting so dark that I could barely see them, but I could feel them next to me.

"So… now what?" I asked. "Do we just wait for morning?"

"Pretty much." Mark answered. "There's not much else we can do here. I think we're reasonably safe from the storm, but there's not much else we can do until the weather lets up, and it gets light again."

"Okay." I grinned to myself. So I'd be sharing Mark's body heat all night. Score!

And not just Mark's body heat either. It suddenly occurred to me that I had a very warm Condor on my other side. The gossip from Jill's place ran through my head. That could be kind of… awkward.

And yet, I was curious too.

"I'm sorry if I scared you guys." I said, to distract myself from these thoughts. "I promise not to black out again." I joked.

"That's okay, Princess." Mark said. "I was just glad that you were with us. I hate to think of what would have happened if you had been alone."

"I'm just glad you're okay." Jason added.

"I'm glad you guys were with me too." I said, giving both of their arms a squeeze. "I'm scared…"

"Don't be scared, Prin." Jason said, "There's nothing out there but the storm."

"No, silly… not of the storm." I said. "I'm scared of dying… alone."

The cave was silent for a moment, except for the howling of the wind outside, so I continued.

"I'm not afraid of dying. I know it could happen anytime in our fight against Spectra. But… I don't want to be alone. If we had to die… I would want it to be together."

"I don't want to die alone, either." Mark admitted. "But my biggest fear is that I might let one of _you_ die… "

I could imagine. That must be the burden of being Commander. I saw his worry and concern for me in an entirely new light. I laid my head on his shoulder.

"You would never _let_ one of us die, Mark." I protested. "We all knew what we signed up for when we joined G-Force. We've _chosen_ this path."

Mark gave my hand a gentle squeeze. It set my heart thumping.

"Dying doesn't scare me at all." Jason said softly, almost like we weren't even there. I could see that he was lost in his own thoughts.

"Even dying alone…" he continued. "That's nothing. But _living_ alone… that's another thing altogether."

I sat up, and turned toward him slightly, putting my hand on his shoulder.

"What do you mean, Jason?" I asked.

"I mean… sometimes I hate this life. The way it separates us from everyone else. It's so… solitary." he explained.

That gave me new insight into the Condor. I had always assumed that his demeanor meant that he _wanted_ to be alone. I was coming to see that it was just a protective shell that he wrapped around himself, much like the way I wrapped myself up in my own feelings, not telling Mark the way I felt.

"You're _not_ alone, Jason." I said firmly. He turned to look at me, his eyes glinting in the little light there was.

"I'm here with you." I stated. "_I'm_ here to live life with you. For as long as we have."

Then I reached out and gave him a hug.

I would never have thought that Jason could be so… vulnerable… so… emotionally needy. But for a second there, he seemed to cling to me as a drowning man would to a life raft. Then he pulled away slightly.

"Thanks, Prin." he said quietly.

"I meant it, Jase." I replied.

"And the same goes for you." I said, turning to Mark. "You're not _letting_ me do anything. Whatever I do, it's because I _want_ to follow you. Got it?"

"Yes, Princess." Mark grinned.

"I'm here for you guys too." Jason said. "I'll protect you, no matter what."

"I thought that was _my_ job." Mark protested, in an amused tone.

"And here I thought you two needed _me_ to protect _you_!" I laughed.

We were all laughing now, and it felt good. These were the two men I loved most in the whole world, and we were safe… and together.

What better reason to be happy?

We sat in silence for awhile, each of us contemplating our own thoughts. I stifled a yawn, and saw that Jason did too. I wasn't surprised. He had gotten a lot less sleep than I had the night before.

"I'm just going to take one more look outside." said Mark, back to being Commander. "To make sure everything's okay."

He stood up and walked to the cave entrance.

"I could use some shut-eye." Jason said. "How about you?"

"Yeah… I'm pretty tired." I admitted. "But the idea of sleeping on these rocks doesn't thrill me."

"I have an idea." Jason offered. Gently he removed my wings and laid them down on the ground. But just as I was starting to shiver from the cold, he pulled me down next to him and wrapped his wings around me.

Mark turned and saw what he was doing.

"Watch yourself, Condor!" he warned.

"I'd rather watch Prin." Jason quipped.

Mark ignored his comment.

"As Commander, I should be sharing my wings with Princess." he insisted.

"Don't worry about it, Mark." Jason replied. "Besides which, my wings are longer than yours anyway."

Mark winced at that one. I hadn't realized he was so sensitive about being a little shorter than Jason, even with the heels on his boots.

"That's okay, Mark." I grinned. "I'm happy to share _both_ of your wings."

Jason and I took off our helmets, and prepared to go to sleep.

I lay on my side, on top of my wings, and snuggled next to Jason. I could feel his body conforming to mine behind me. I looked over at Mark, who was still checking the landscape outside the cave. He turned and came back over, taking off his own helmet and lying down a few inches away from me.

"Get back over here, Commander." I whispered to him. "The Survival Manual says that we have to share body heat, remember?" I reached out my arms to him.

To my surprise, I felt him comply. He inched over slowly, until my face was pressed against his back and he had pulled his wings over me as well.

I slipped my lower arm under his neck and my upper arm over his chest. I was going to take advantage of this situation, or I knew I would be kicking myself later.

I knew this was for survival, but oh… it felt so good holding Mark close to me like this. Well… when I thought about it… having Jason hold me from behind didn't feel so bad either.

I blushed in the darkness, glad that neither Mark nor Jason could see my face.

I closed my eyes, and dreamed of my Eagle.

We were soaring together… then he turned and kissed me, saying,

"Good night, my beautiful Swan."

I blinked… had I dreamed that?

I must have.

I drifted off to sleep again.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Mmmm… I was so comfy. Warm, and snuggly. Strong arms around me… just liked I'd always dreamed.

"Hey, time to get up."

"No…" I mumbled, still groggy. "Just one more minute…"

"Get up, Princess."

My eyes snapped open. Mark was standing over at the cave entrance, looking outside.

It wasn't _Mark's_ arms around me.

"Oh!" I exclaimed, pulling abruptly away from Jason.

"Man… that's cold!" Jason complained.

"Get up, Jason!" Mark ordered.

"I am up…" Jason drawled.

Mark looked irritated at Jason's attitude. I tried to smooth things over.

"Come on, Mark." I said, "It's hard to go from 'warm and cozy' to 'cold and awake' in three seconds."

Somehow, that just seemed to make Mark even more angry. Why couldn't I do anything right?

"Maybe we should try to make a fire now." Jason snickered. "We've got plenty of wood…"

"You're not helping, Jason!" I cried.

"Sorry…" he grinned. "It's just that lying on the ground all night made me feel so stiff."

Mark's face was starting to turn a brilliant shade of purple. Why couldn't Jason leave well enough alone? For goodness' sake, all Mark had wanted was for him to wake up.

"Is anyone hungry?" I blurted out, desperately trying to get this to stop.

The guys ignored me in favor of trading angry looks across the room.

"I'm starving!" I said, trying to divert their attention away from each other. "Heck, I'm hungry enough to try the MRE!"

They both looked at me in confusion.

"Huh?" asked Jason.

I didn't think either one of them had heard a word I had said, but at least they weren't glaring at each other anymore.

"I'm. Hungry. Need. Food." I said, exaggerating each word.

"Want. To. Eat. MRE." I continued, pulling the food pack out of its pocket in my wings.

"Damn, I had forgotten that we had those." Jason muttered. "I've always been kind of scared about what kind of food they can fit in those packets."

"Well, anything sounds good right about now." Mark put in. "Thanks for reminding us, Princess."

The Eagle dug out his food pack and opened it.

Jason and I peered over his shoulder, attempting to see what was inside.

Mark pulled out the entrée, a strange look on his face.

Spaghetti.

"I guess Jason's in deep trouble now!" I giggled. "It's still two against one!"

"Hey, at least it's Italian!" Jason grinned. "No steak for you two!"

Even Mark cracked a smile.

I was relieved. At least Mark and Jason had forgotten about their silly little fight. It was amazing how G-Force got anything done with these two alpha males always butting heads.

We all sat down and began to eat. After a few bites, Jason spoke.

"You know, Meals Ready to Eat isn't the right name for these things." he said.

"What do you mean?" I asked. The food wasn't _that_ bad, but I couldn't imagine myself eating it at any other time.

"It's really one big lie." Jason explained. "It's not a Meal, it's not Ready, and I can't Eat it."

"Well, maybe MRE actually stands for Munitions Resembling Edibles." I joked.

"Or, Meals Rejected by the Enemy!" Mark put in.

We all laughed.

Despite the terrible food, it was one of the most enjoyable meals I had had in a long time.

When we were done eating, I stood up.

"I've going to head back that way." I pointed my finger deeper into the cave. "I'll be back in a minute."

Mark looked up, confused.

"Why?" he asked. "Maybe we should go with you. Who knows what's back there?"

"Uh… I'm not going too far." I said, my cheeks turning slightly pink. "Nature calls… you know…"

"Oh." Now it was Mark's turn to go red.

Seizing my chance, I scurried off to the back of the cave. I managed to find a spot about twenty feet away, behind a corner. At least I didn't have to de-transmute to do this. It was about the only advantage my miniskirt had over the guys' Birdstyles.

Returning to the front of the cave, I found the guys ready to go. They had pulled away enough snow blocking the cave entrance for us to depart. It was bright and sunny outside.

"Which way is the lodge?" I asked.

"It should be that way," Mark pointed, "based on where the avalanche deposited us yesterday."

Wonder of wonders, Jason agreed with a sharp grunt.

"Let's go, then." I said.

"I wish I had the G-2 here." Jason muttered as we were walking.

"Too bad the G-2 is back on Earth." I replied.

"Actually, it's back in the parking lot at the lodge." Jason said. "Tiny left me with it when he dropped me off."

"So, could you go get it and come back to pick me up then?" I asked coyly.

"Anything for you, Princess." he grinned. He gave a bow that probably would have been gallant, if he hadn't tripped over something.

"What was that?" Mark asked, as Jason stumbled.

"I don't know… a tree root or something." Jason replied.

I took a look at the spot where Jason had tripped. The snow had been pushed away to reveal the ground.

Only, when I looked, it wasn't the ground I saw.

It was a green Spectran uniform.

"Guys!" I hissed. "Back here!"

Mark turned around, a slightly annoyed look on his face, until he walked over and saw what I was looking at. Then his face turned white.

"Spectra." he whispered, almost under his breath. "What are they doing here?

"I think another good question is, what is this guy doing here?" Jason asked. He had brushed off more snow and we saw that it was, indeed, a dead soldier.

"Do you think they have a base nearby?" I asked.

"I wouldn't be surprised." said Jason. "It's not like the Happiness Boys haven't shown up with secret bases in strange places before."

"We should warn Chief Anderson." Mark said.

My heart fell. So much for my vacation. It was back to work already.

Damn those Spectran goons.

Mark stepped back a bit, raising his communicator to his lips, when suddenly he disappeared from view.

"Mark!" I cried, but when I stepped toward him I fell as well.

A door in the ground had opened, and I found myself sitting with Mark, Jason and a lot of snow on a metallic floor.

We were inside a Spectran base.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

There was no light, other than from the open door above us. The based almost seemed… abandoned.

Mark tried to contact the Chief on his communicator, but wasn't able to get through.

"There must be some kind of dampening field built into the walls." I mused. "I couldn't hear you through my bracelet either."

"So now what?" Jason asked.

"We need to find out what this base is for." Mark replied. "I don't think they know we're here, or they would have shown up by now."

"I agree." I nodded. "I think our best move is to do our recon and get out as fast as possible."

"You're right, Princess." Mark said. "Let's split up. We can each take one of these corridors and be back in thirty minutes."

"Okay. See you guys then." Jason ran off into the darkness.

"I'll go this way. See you in half an hour, Princess." Mark said, smiling at me.

"Okay. See you then." I smiled, kissing my fingertips and waving them at him as I walked away.

88888

As I walked through the dark corridors, my eyes became adjusted to the lack of light. It turned out that it wasn't _completely_ dark, just very dim. There seemed to be a small glow emanating from the ceiling.

I had been moving stealthily through the base for a couple of minutes when I came across a door. Until this point, the hallways had been completely featureless, so this was something interesting.

Quietly, I readied my yo-yo, then opened the door. I stood to the side of the entranceway, ready for trouble.

None came.

It was silent, and no additional light came from beyond the doorway. I took a deep breath, then slipped inside.

The room was empty, except for a large capsule, and a computer panel. There wasn't even a chair. The capsule was made of some kind of plexi-glass, and didn't look remarkable in any way. But who knew what it was used for?

Curious, I went over to the computer panel. Looking over the controls, I saw what appeared to be the On switch. I pressed it.

The moment the red button depressed, the floor fell out from under me.

Darn it! I had _literally_ fallen for the oldest trap in the book! I couldn't believe that I had been so stupid!

But I only had a second to berate myself before I hit the floor and the world went dark.

88888

Ow… my head was on fire… I got up slowly, leaning against the wall. Above me, I could barely see the trap door through which I had fallen.

How long had I been out? I checked the time: fifteen minutes.

That seemed like a long time for that kind of fall, but then, I had been unconscious for hours after the avalanche yesterday. Perhaps I wasn't 100 yet.

In any case, my head was starting to feel better, and a sense of urgency came over me. I had to find Mark, and meet up with him.

Looking around, I saw another door in this room. After checking it out, I opened it to reveal another nondescript hallway.

Checking both ways down the corridor, I decided to turn left on impulse. Creeping down the hallway, I saw a white shape emerge from the shadows.

Mark.

I grinned to myself. At least I could do _something_ right. I approached him and tapped him on the shoulder.

He whirled around, a look of surprise on his face. When he saw me, his face broke into a big smile.

"Princess!" he exclaimed, "Where did you come from?"

"Back that way." I shrugged and pointed over my shoulder.

"I haven't seen anything except a maze of these damn corridors, some computers and a few unlucky goons." Mark said. "Did you find anything interesting?"

Oh, this was embarrassing. How much should I admit?

"Uh, just one of those Spectran booby traps." I muttered, desperately hoping that Mark would assume that I'd avoided it.

As I was speaking, Mark checked the time.

"I think we'd better get back to the rendezvous." he stated.

I sighed inwardly, relieved. He wasn't going to make an issue out of the trap. I was just about to agree with him that we should go back to meet Jason when another thought popped into my head.

"No… wait…" I said to Mark, putting my hand on his arm. He turned and looked at me.

"What is it, Princess?" he asked.

"I just realized…" I said slowly, "that this layout looks familiar. It reminds me of one of the standard Spectran bases I was studying last week from the intel reports."

"Go on." Mark nodded.

"I… I think I know where the control room should be." I offered. "I think I could get us there pretty quickly."

Mark considered my suggestion for a moment.

"Okay." he said, finally. "We'll take a couple of minutes and see what we can find. It's not like Jason is ever on time to these rendezvous anyhow… at least, not unless the base is about to blow up." He winked at me.

"I promise, I haven't set any explosives… yet…" I grinned. Mark grinned back at me.

When he looked at me like that, I felt like I could do anything. Filled with a new confidence, I gestured which way we should go.

"Lead on, Princess." Mark said, giving my hand a gentle squeeze. To my surprise, he didn't let my hand drop, but kept holding it. I began to lead him quietly along the corridor, and couldn't resist giving his hand a quick squeeze back.

Was it actually possible to find the fulfillment of my dreams inside a Spectra base? I began to wonder.

Making a couple of turns, I came to where I was sure the control room should be.

But there was nothing.

It was just an empty hallway, like all the rest.

I stopped and thought for a moment, trying to figure out what had gone awry.

"What's wrong, Princess?" Mark asked in a concerned voice.

Suddenly, I knew. Like a bolt of lightning, it hit me.

"It's a trap!" I hissed.

Acting on instinct, I placed both of my palms on Mark's chest, and shoved him away from me. The instant I did so, a force field appeared between us, brushing the end of my gloves.

I stared at my blackened fingertips. My gloves had protected me, but it still hurt like hell. I glanced over my shoulder, and saw that another force field had trapped me in a makeshift prison.

I couldn't believe how much I had screwed up: first the computer panel, and now this. At least Mark was safe.

But the Eagle had a horrified look on his face.

"I'll get you out of there, Princess!" he promised, as he rapidly began looking for a control panel on the walls.

A sense of failure washed over me. I couldn't do anything right. I had been so wrapped up in holding Mark's hand, and here was where it had led me. Maybe the Chief had been right when he had said that personal relationships on the team weren't a good idea.

A sob escaped my throat and I gasped for breath. The air seemed thick.

Slowly, my knees bent, and I collapsed to the floor. I laid my head on my arms and gazed at Mark through half-closed eyes. What I really wanted to do was go to sleep. Maybe if I got some rest, it would all get better…

"Princess!" shouted Mark, "Wake up! There's some kind of gas in there! You have to snap out of it!"

"What?" I replied. That made sense. Why else was I suddenly so tired? I struggled to keep my eyes open. I took another breath, only to have my entire body fill with a burning sensation.

The pain was unbelievable. My eyes watered, and my arms and legs began to twitch involuntarily.

"Mark…" I said weakly, desperately trying to reach out to him. But that stupid force field was still between us.

The Eagle slammed his fist against the wall in frustration.

"Where is that damn control panel?" he screamed. He crouched down and put his face as close to mine as he could.

"Just hold on, Princess. Don't leave me…"

Had he said the same words to me, just yesterday? A vague memory floated to the surface of my mind.

_Being wrapped in Mark's wings… held in his arms…_

_His voice whispering to me…_

"_Hang on, Princess… don't leave me…"_

"I'll… try…" I grunted, as my body spasmed in waves of excruciating pain.

The pain reached into my brain. My eyes rolled into the back of my head.

"Mark…" I whispered. I don't even know if I said it out loud, or just inside my head.

"I love you…"

And then, all conscious thought stopped.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Ow… my body ached all over… especially my head. What had happened?

I struggled to remember.

_Walking down the corridor…_

_A room… with a capsule… _

_Pressing the button on the control panel…_

_Falling…_

And then it all went blank. I couldn't remember anything after that.

I looked around. I was back in a featureless corridor. It looked just like all of the others.

How had I gotten here? What had happened to me?

I checked the time.

Darn it! I was late for the rendezvous. Mark and Jason were probably worried about me.

But how should I get back? I wasn't even certain where I was.

Suddenly, an image of the base's layout rose up in my mind. It looked just like those Spectran intel reports I had been reviewing last week…

Of course! No wonder this looked familiar! It was a standard Spectran base configuration.

With new confidence, I stood up and briskly walked toward the rendezvous point.

Within a minute, I was there.

Jason was pacing impatiently. There was no sign of Mark.

"Prin!" the Condor exclaimed, looking at me. "Where have you been? You're late!"

"I'm sorry…" I muttered. "Actually… I'm not sure what happened…"

But Jason didn't seem to hear me.

"Mark's not here either. It's not like him to be late." he said grimly. "He's got to be in some kind of trouble."

"Should we go find him?" I asked, hesitantly. I was suddenly feeling unsure of myself, and grateful that Jason was there to take command. Come to think of it, he had always been there when I needed him.

The Condor nodded.

"I think that's our best option." he responded. "If he's in trouble, he needs us."

"Let's go that way." I suggested, pointing at a corridor. "I think it leads to the main control room of this place."

Jason turned to me, a surprised look on his face.

"How would you know that?" he asked.

"This place has a standard layout." I shrugged. "It was in the Spectran intel reports last week. Didn't you read them?"

Jason gave a short laugh. It had a cold, mocking sound.

"No." he replied. "I never read those things. Thank God, you're here, Prin." He looked at me fixedly, putting his hands on my shoulders.

"I don't know what I'd do without you, Prin." he admitted. "When you didn't come back either, I had this gut feeling that something terrible had happened to you."

"I'm fine." I smiled softly at him. Even through his visor, I could see the intense look in his eyes as he stared at me. Why had I never noticed how much his eyes showed his true emotions? He tried to mask them, as he did the rest of his face, but I could see through that.

He had been scared.

He had been scared… that I was in trouble.

A sudden thought raced through my mind.

Did Jason… have feelings… for me?

Memories began to surface.

_Jason sitting with me in the snow, after I had hurt my leg, gazing at me intently…_

_Waking up after the avalanche in Jason's arms, the Condor looking down at me, with an almost… tender expression._

_Telling him, "There's someone out there for you. Someone who'll make you happy."_

_His response… "Maybe, I've already found her."_

As it all came to me in a rush, I was amazed that I hadn't seen it before.

Jason had feelings for me.

And… maybe… I had feelings for him too.

"Prin?" he asked, concerned. "Can you show me the way?"

I pulled myself out of my reverie and smiled at him. I had made my decision.

"Anything for you, Jason." I smiled, giving him a 'come hither' look. "Just follow me."

I swished my hips, and beckoned him down the hallway.

In an instant, he was at my side.

"What's gotten into you, Prin?" he whispered in my ear. "Not that I'm complaining…"

"I just…" I stopped walking and turned to look at him for a moment, "I think I'm seeing things more clearly, now."

"What do you mean, Prin?" he asked. "What do you see more clearly?"

"Jason… I'm really glad that you came on this ski trip." I purred. God, he looked sexy as the Condor. So lean… so imposing… so… powerful…

"It wouldn't have been nearly as much fun, without you." I finished, moving closer to him.

A look of disbelief crept over his face.

"What about Mark?" he asked bluntly.

"Mark's… nice…" I replied coyly, "But I think I prefer… naughty…" I touched his jaw with my gloved finger, and slowly trailed it down to his chin, and then up to his lips. I left it there for a moment, before removing it, and briefly touching the finger to my own lips.

Jason caught my wrist in his hand, but his hold was surprisingly gentle.

"I don't like games, Prin." he said seriously.

"I'm not playing games, Jase." I said, just as seriously. "I've made my choice."

And I had. How simple it had been, and how clear everything was now.

Mark had been ignoring my feelings for years… just as I had been ignoring Jason's. I had finally decided to go after someone who wanted me.

I glowed inside, knowing I had made the right decision.

"You don't know what this means to me, Prin…" Jason said softly.

"Actually, I think I do…" I breathed.

He moved his head slightly, as if to kiss me, then realized that we both had our helmets on.

"Damn visors…" he grinned. "And I don't think we should be taking them off." he said, looking around at the Spectran architecture.

"Just wait until we get back to the lodge…" I whispered. "No helmets there…"

"I'm going to hold you to that." Jason drawled, a wicked look in his eyes.

"I'm counting on it." I winked.

88888

As we crept down the dim corridors, I practically felt Jason's gaze on my body. It gave me a new confidence, and I found myself moving with more and more certainty.

After a few minutes, we came to a closed door.

"This is it." I said. "The control room should be right behind this door."

Jason stood to one side of the doorway and tested it. It was locked.

"Okay." Jason said, "Set a small charge, Prin. We don't want the Happiness Boys to know we're here."

I nodded, working quickly. I noted with pride that there was almost no sound, and only a thin whisper of smoke upon detonation.

"Great work, Prin." Jason grinned at me. We stood on either side of the doorway.

Jason counted with his fingers. _1… 2… 3…_

On three, Jason kicked open the door and we burst into the room.

The room was large, and nearly empty. Instead of being a control room, it appeared to be some kind of warehouse. A few crates and supplies occupied the corners. Another doorway lay across the room from where we stood.

"Well, this sure isn't a control room." Jason said, "But it seems that Spectra was using it for something. Why don't we take a look and see what's in these crates?"

But as the Condor went to reach for them, I suddenly knew that something was wrong.

"Stop!" I warned. "This isn't right! It's a trap!"

Jason looked at me quizzically.

"How could you know that?" he asked.

Before I could answer, hidden openings appeared in the walls and hordes of green-suited Spectran goons began to fill the room. Jason and I were experienced at hand-to-hand combat, but the odds were looking close to five hundred to two.

Still, since the Condor was one of those two, I was certain that we could take them.

Jason looked at me, and I knew exactly what he was thinking.

"Surrender, G-Force!" one of the Spectran soldiers cried, "We have you surrounded!"

Ignoring his words, I lightly jumped onto Jason's shoulders, just as he began to spin.

We turned faster and faster, until the force of our Whirlwind Pyramid forced the goons back against the walls, screaming with the agony of having their bones break upon impact.

After a few moments we dropped out of the whirlwind, and began dispatching the remaining goons.

"Time to hit the road!" Jason stated, pointing his thumb at the other doorway. Quickly, I ran over as Jason fought off the soldiers who were beginning to recover from falling victim to the Whirlwind Pyramid.

I didn't worry about making a small charge this time. Within seconds I had set the explosive, and it detonated with a satisfying boom.

The door swung open, just as Jason came running toward me. We pulled handfuls of mini-grenades out of our belt pouches and threw them behind us as we ran out of the room.

The sounds of multiple explosions and screams came out of the room, but none of the goons followed. Jason stared intently at the doorway, to make sure that remained the case.

Sighing with relief, I looked around the chamber we had just entered.

What I saw took my breath away.

Zoltar was staring at me.

But not just one Zoltar.

There was another… and another…

There were at least one hundred Zoltars in that chamber.

"Uh… Jase…" I tugged on his wings.

The Condor turned his attention from the door through which we had just entered, to me.

When he saw what I had, his jaw dropped.

"How many are there?" he asked, in an awed whisper.

I took a quick inventory. The Zoltars were all encased in glass tubes, as if frozen in place. Since they were laid out in a grid-like pattern, they were easy to count.

"One hundred and thirteen." I reported.

"Are they alive?" Jason asked, curiously running his hands over one of the tubes. The Zoltar inside stared straight ahead, unmoving.

"I think so…" I replied. "They seem to be in some kind of stasis."

"Multiple Zoltars…" Jason mused. "Do you think? Yes… that has to be it!"

"What?" I asked, not following his train of thought.

"Don't you see?" Jason said excitedly, "I've always known, deep down, that Zoltar _isn't_ that good. He can't _always_ keep escaping us! I think… sometimes… he _doesn't_ escape. Sometimes… he blows up with his mecha."

It was an interesting thought.

"So then, that would mean…" I looked at Jason with understanding.

"That these are _replacement_ Zoltars." Jason exclaimed triumphantly.

"No wonder they hid this base on Frozatica!" I said, "The year-round temperatures below freezing must help keep these Zoltars in stasis."

Jason nodded, then paused for a moment before he spoke.

"But the question is, how are they making these replacement Zoltars?"


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

I opened my eyes. The lids felt heavy, as if I had been sedated. Come to think of it, my whole body felt as if I had been drugged. What I saw confirmed that this was likely.

I appeared to be shackled against a wall, my hands high above my head.

In front of me, Zoltar was bent over some kind of machine, busy at a task. Between us was a wall of metal bars. I appeared to be in some kind of cell.

Quietly checking my physical condition, I noticed red welts on my arm that looked like injection sites. There were three of them.

Three of them… my skin had been pierced with a needle three times. One was likely from the sedative… but what were the other two from?

Zoltar began to turn away from whatever he was working on. I feigned unconsciousness and watched him through barely opened eyes.

But as he moved away from the machine, I gasped out loud.

_I _was in the machine.

Well, obviously, not _me_; I was here in this cell. But someone who looked _just_ like the Swan was in a glass tube only ten feet away from me.

Zoltar heard my small noise. Turning toward my cell, he smiled evilly.

"Ah… I see my _original_ is awake." he smirked.

Original?

Suddenly, it made sense.

_The glass capsule…_

_The computer panel…_

_Pressing the red button…_

_Falling…_

Zoltar had captured me after my fall and injected me with a sedative. And then he had somehow… replicated me?

"I can see the amazement on your face, Swan." Zoltar said smugly. "As you can see, my clone has duplicated you in every way."

My _clone_? 

Zoltar bent down and moved his face closer to mine. I could see his eyes flashing with a terrifying light.

"There's only one difference between you…" he pointed at me with a long, red finger, "and her." he cackled triumphantly as his hand shifted to indicate the other Swan.

"What's that?" I asked, my voice indicating more weakness than I really felt. I figured that I might as well play along with his little game of _'Before I Kill You Mr. Bond'_. I needed to find out what he was up to.

Zoltar smiled coldly. The look on his face sent a chill through my heart.

"She has been subliminally programmed," he hissed, "to kill your Commander."

I wasn't able to hide the look of shock on my face.

"What makes you think you can do that?" I asked, with more bravado than I felt.

Zoltar laughed mockingly.

"You think you're so smart!" he replied, "Spectra has more technology at its disposal than you could ever dream of! For us, programming a living brain is a simple matter."

"And now…" he continued, "it's time for _my_ little Swan to meet the Eagle."

He pulled a lever on the wall, and the glass tube lifted to free the other Swan. I stared at her, my eyes pleading with her, but her face was blank, as if she weren't even aware of her surroundings.

Zoltar walked over to her and spoke softly into her ear. I could barely hear his words.

"Swan," he ordered, "You are to locate your Commander, and lead him to the designated co-ordinates. He must _not_ escape."

The woman who looked like me nodded stiffly, as if she weren't aware of what she was agreeing to. Zoltar grabbed her by the arm and took her through a doorway into another room, beyond my sight.

I looked around frantically, trying to find some way to get free of my prison. There was nothing immediately obvious to me, so I tested my bonds. The shackle holding my ankles together, on the wall, seemed to be a little loose. I began to wrench it from the wall with slow, subtle movements. I didn't want Zoltar to see what I was doing.

After a moment, the purple-garbed Spectran leader returned, alone. He flicked a switch, and a monitor came to life. I saw the other Swan lying on the ground. It appeared that she was underneath the trapdoor through which I had originally fallen.

"We can watch your duplicate's progress on the security system." Zoltar smirked. "Unfortunately, there is no sound, since that hasn't been installed yet."

He gave a frown. "I don't know how you found this base before it was fully completed, but never matter. It will be your downfall, regardless!"

Even though I quietly continued trying to break my ankles free from their shackles, my attention was fixed on the silent images on the security monitor. I could see the Swan slowly get up and survey her surroundings. Slowly, she stood up, and moved toward the corridor.

She walked purposefully for a minute, then came upon Mark.

My breath caught in my throat. He turned to her, and gave a big smile. He was happy to see her!

No… he was happy to see _me_. He didn't know that it wasn't the right Swan.

The two of them spoke for a few moments. She grinned at him, and he grinned back. Then he reached for her hand, and she led him down the maze of dim hallways.

"I didn't realize that the Eagle was so taken in by your feminine charms." smirked Zoltar. "If I had known that, I might have tried something like this years ago."

I seethed inside, but said nothing. Still, his words lingered in my mind. _Was_ Mark taken in by my 'charms'? From this third person perspective, he certainly had seemed pleased to see… me. And the two of them looked like they were close. Was Mark actually more interested in me that way than I had thought?

I looked at the two of them, creeping down the corridors, hand in hand. Except for their Birdstyle uniforms, they looked like a couple sneaking off to a dark corner for a little private time.

But I knew that wasn't what they were doing. Mark would _never_ think of anything like that during a mission. And certainly not in the middle of a Spectran base.

Suddenly, they stopped. The other Swan was looking around, confused. Then, with no warning, she placed her palms on Mark's chest and shoved him away from her.

My heart caught in my throat. Was she pushing him into Zoltar's trap?

A force field appeared between them. I bit back a cry from my lips.

But it wasn't Mark who was trapped… it was the Swan!

She had pushed him away from the trap. I sighed inwardly with relief.

"Idiot!" Zoltar screamed. "What is she doing? She had him! I had him!"

"Squad One!" he shouted into some kind of microphone. "The Eagle has infiltrated the base at sector K-13! Shoot to kill! Repeat, shoot to kill!"

The purple maniac turned and glared at me, his cape swirling.

"I didn't realize that your feelings for your Commander went so deep." he growled. "They are apparently strong enough to resist my subliminal suggestions."

I shrank back against the wall. The look in Zoltar's eyes was terrifying.

I braced for the worst, but it never came. He smiled slowly, and the expression chilled my soul.

"It's a good thing that I have a _backup_ plan." Zoltar said.

He walked over to the wall and opened a hidden panel, from which he drew a small vial of… blood?

Suddenly it all made sense.

In order to clone me, to replicate my face and body so exactly, they needed my DNA. I had _three_ welts on my arm. One for the sedative, and _two_ blood samples.

I had to stop him. I couldn't take the chance that the second duplicate would have a change of heart as well. Especially now that Zoltar was aware of that particular aspect of my character.

But my struggles were in vain. Helplessly, I watched as the glass capsule I had seen before was lowered into the room in front of me. A goon in a white lab coat accompanied the device. Zoltar walked up to his control panel and keyed in some sequences.

"_This_ time, I will re-program her brainwaves!" the madman declared. "She will not be so prone to these attacks of _conscience_." he sneered. He deposited the vial of my blood into an opening in the machinery.

"You must be careful!" the lab-coat goon shouted. "Changing brainwave patterns could have some significant impacts on her personality! They may realize that she is not _their_ Swan!"

"It doesn't matter!" Zoltar shouted the technician down. "They won't be alive long enough to make that deduction! She will eliminate them first!"

The goon looked unsure, but remained silent.

"Have you managed to work out the technology replication issues yet?" demanded Zoltar.

"Um… no sir." the goon mumbled. "We haven't had enough time. You told us that we'd have another few months before this plan came into effect."

"Well, we don't have a few more months!" screamed the Spectran leader, "G-Force is here, now!" He backhanded the goon across the face, and the man went tumbling to the floor as Zoltar continued to rant.

"I don't know _how_ they discovered this base so quickly! We took every precaution! And yet, they are here." He turned to me, his eyes blazing with his madness.

I chose not to respond to his unasked question. He laughed at my silence.

"Not that it matters." Zoltar sneered. "We will still eliminate them, then replace them with _our_ duplicates!" He turned back to the goon. "What level of the Birdstyle technology can we replicate?" he demanded.

"We can duplicate simple technologies, such as their explosives." the goon answered, shrinking back from his leader, despite himself. "And the clothing style. But the primary weapon and the transmutation technology don't seem to be working in the duplicates."

"Imbecile!" Zoltar cried, walloping the goon across the face again. "No matter, we'll figure it out soon enough." He turned back to me.

"It's time to begin."

Zoltar pressed a button, and the capsule took on a silvery sheen. The bright light emanating from the device prevented me from seeing exactly what took place, but after a few moments, the capsule rose back up toward the ceiling, leaving behind a glass tube with another Swan in it.

As the previous one had, she looked _exactly_ like me.

But _was_ she like me? Zoltar had made brainwave modifications. What if this one had no remorse? No regrets? What if she led Mark to his doom?

I continued to wiggle my ankles. The shackle around them was getting a little looser. But not loose enough.

This time, Zoltar didn't bother to whisper to the duplicate Swan. He spoke loudly enough for me to hear, and he smirked at me as he did so.

"Swan," he ordered, "You are to locate… _the_ _Condor_… and lead him to the new co-ordinates. Once reinforcements arrive, you will assist in his capture."

She nodded stiffly, as the first had done, and allowed Zoltar to lead her from the room.

I looked back at the security monitor. During the cloning process, I hadn't been paying attention to what was going on with Mark. The first Swan clone was still lying on the floor. She appeared to be surrounded by some kind of gas. Mark was nowhere in sight.

When Zoltar returned, he didn't speak to me, but silently turned on a different monitor to a new channel.

I saw the second Swan duplicate lying on the ground in a corridor. Slowly, she rose up, shaking her head, and began walking down the hallway. I wasn't sure how she knew where she was going, but she moved purposefully.

After a few moments, I realized that she was returning to the rendezvous point. When she arrived, Jason was already there, pacing impatiently.

Of course! Mark was late to the rendezvous, because the first duplicate had led him astray. But I was concerned to see that he wasn't there yet. What had happened to him?

I couldn't stop staring at the Swan on the monitor. She was conversing with Jason, but her body language looked unfamiliar to me. After a few moments, she gave Jason a strange look. Was that what I thought it was?

It was. She swished her hips and beckoned to him with her little finger. What the hell was she doing?

Whatever it was, Jason seemed to like it. He was on her in an instant, and they were talking low and close. I saw her run her fingertip over his lips, then touch it to her own.

God, this was embarrassing. I knew it wasn't _me_, but I turned red at the thought of doing something like that with Jason. What must he think of me?

Apparently, he didn't mind. He almost looked as if he was going to kiss her, but didn't. But he definitely seemed… interested…

This was _very_ unnerving. I loved Jason like a brother, and to see myself flirting with him like this… it was strangely compelling, but also very unsettling. I had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"It appears that the brainwave modifications were successful." Zoltar cried gleefully. "She's leading the Condor around by the… _nose_…"

"It would seem that you have _hidden_ talents, little Swan." he leered at me. I spat at his face, but he was too far away, and I didn't hit my target.

Helplessly, I watched as the Swan led Jason through a maze of corridors to a doorway. She placed a small charge and blew open the lock, letting Jason kick the door open. They entered some kind of warehouse.

But as Jason started to inspect one of the crates, her face took on a look of alarm, and she shouted something.

"What's going on?" cried Zoltar.

I gathered that this wasn't part of his plan, then. A small flame of hope began to flicker within me.

"All available squadrons, attack: Sector R-39!" Zoltar screamed into his microphone.

Before my eyes, hundreds of guards poured into the room. Jason couldn't fight that many single-handed, could he? My eyes betrayed my concern.

"We have him now…" Zoltar hissed to me.

But before I could draw a breath, I saw the Swan leap up onto Jason's shoulders. They were performing the Whirlwind Pyramid technique!

The image of the room blurred and wavered, until the monitor went black.

"That damn maneuver has blown out the security camera!" ranted Zoltar. "That stupid Swan! All she had to do was get out of the way!"

With a sudden, sharp movement, he turned toward me, a wild, crazed look on his face.

Before I could blink, he had somehow unlocked my cell door, and had his hands around my throat.

"You little bitch…" he spat. "You resisted my re-programming… _twice_… And now, you're going to pay!"

I could smell his fetid breath as his hold tightened around my throat. Desperately, I managed to wrench my ankle shackle free from the wall, and swung my knees up to hit him between his legs.

He released his grip and howled in pain for a moment. It was all I needed. Pushing off against the wall, I vaulted upward until I was upside down, my wrists still bound. I came down again, crashing my boot-heels onto the back of Zoltar's neck.

Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to take him out completely. He rolled over, pulling a gun out of the folds of his cape.

"A quick end is too good for a slut like you!" he screamed, pointing his weapon at me. I twisted my body in an attempt to deflect the bullet with my wings, but the shot never came.

Instead, I heard Zoltar grunting in pain, and terror. I looked up to see Mark wrapping his arm around the Spectran leader's throat.

He looked up at me in confusion, blinking rapidly. I could understand. He thought he had seen me die in the corridor. But he quickly turned his attention back to his enemy.

"This is the end for you, you purple freak!" Mark shouted, slamming Zoltar into the wall. But somehow, as the Eagle grabbed his victim for another throw, all he ended up with was a handful of purple cape. Zoltar's mocking laughter echoed throughout the room.

"You haven't seen the last of me, G-Force!" came his sneering voice.

"Damnit!" Cried Mark, throwing down the cape. "I had him!"

"At least, you have me too." I smiled.

Mark looked at me suspiciously.

"Who are you?" he asked. "You can't be who I think you are."

"I am, Mark." I said softly. I indicated the computer monitor that still showed the prone body of the first Swan duplicate. "_She's_ the fake."

"But… she… she saved me!" Mark sobbed. "She sacrificed her own life for mine!"

I was struck by the depth of his emotion, and longed to hold him. But I was still shackled by the wrists. I put all of the concern and caring I could into my face, and my voice.

"She led you into a trap, Mark. But at the last minute, she realized what she was doing, and overcame Zoltar's subliminal programming."

He looked up, a tear rolling down his face. A panoply of emotions crossed his face as he gazed at me. Finally, he took his Sonic Boomerang out of its holster and used it to cut me down from the wall.

"Thank you." I said gratefully, rubbing my wrists. "I was beginning to lose all feeling in my arms."

The look on his face was unreadable, but my heart broke for him. I reached out and placed my palm on his cheek.

"I'm here, Mark." I said softly. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm staying right by your side."

He caught my hand in his, and brought it to his lips, kissing it softly.

"I'm just grateful that's you're actually here, talking with me." he replied quietly. "When I thought you had died…"

"Shhhh…." I said, placing my finger on his mouth. "This is not the time, Mark. Jason is in trouble, and we need to go help him."

"We _will_ finish this conversation… later…" I promised.

"You're right, Princess." The Eagle nodded. "Now, where is Jason?"


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

As we stepped out into yet another featureless corridor, Mark took my hand. I pulled back for a second, remembering that he had held the Swan duplicate's hand as well. But then I realized that when he had done that, he had thought that she was _me_. I relaxed, and squeezed his fingers in mine.

Mark turned, and smiled at me.

"I'm not letting go." he said quietly. "I'm not going to lose you, again."

"I'm not planning on going anywhere." I smiled back.

My heart fluttered at what Mark had said. Could he really mean what I hoped he did? But now wasn't the time for this. We had to help Jason and get out of here, first. There would be time for this later.

We would _make_ the time.

"Do you know where Jason was?" Mark asked me.

"Zoltar said that he was in sector R-39." I said, "But I have no idea where that is."

"The Spectran base intel reports didn't show that?" Mark asked, surprised.

"What intel reports?" I replied. "Those must have been for Commander's eyes' only. I haven't seen anything on Spectran bases in months."

"Oh." A strange look stole across Mark's face. "I guess I was mistaken, then."

"Well, if you didn't encounter a warehouse full of dead goons, then you didn't find Jason." I mused, "So let's go the opposite way from which you came."

"Makes sense." Mark grinned. "You have a way of making me see things more clearly."

Was he talking about the base layout? Or something more? Sigh…

We moved swiftly down the hallways. Now that Spectra knew we were here, and we knew that they could monitor us on the security system, there was no need for stealth.

After a number of twists and turns, we came across a locked door.

"Let's give it a try." Mark suggested. It wasn't like we'd encountered much else. Most of this base just seemed to be an endless maze of corridors.

I nodded, and placed a small explosive to break open the lock. After it had detonated, Mark kicked open the door as we stood to the sides.

No goons came running out, so we quickly slipped inside. My mouth fell to the floor.

Inside the room was Zoltar. But not just one Zoltar…

Obviously Swans weren't the only experiment that had gone through that cloning device!

Just as I was getting over the shock of seeing a hundred Zoltars in glass tubes, we heard a noise.

Mark motioned for me to hide behind the tubes. I nodded, and began to circle around the side of the room.

The Eagle unsheathed his Sonic Boomerang, and crept toward the source of the noise. I kept an eye on him as I stayed toward the back wall.

A flash of blue swept at the edge of my vision.

"Jason!" Mark said, relieved. "I'm glad we've found you! Princess said something about a bunch of dead goons…"

"They weren't _that_ much trouble." Jason drawled, "Only about five hundred or so. Where have you been? You didn't make the rendezvous!"

I was just about to step out, when I saw Jason beckon to someone on the other side of the room. The Swan appeared from behind a row of glass Zoltar tubes. It seemed that she had survived the encounter with those goons.

She ran lightly up to Jason, and wrapped her arms around his neck.

I felt nauseous. Did Jason really think that was _me_?

Apparently he did. He placed a possessive arm around her waist, saying to her, "Look who I found, Prin!"

Mark's face was as white as his wings. He didn't know!

He didn't know that wasn't me.

I gave a small cough, and stepped out into the center of the room.

Three pairs of eyes turned to stare at me, all with disbelieving looks on their faces.

"No… it can't be…" the other Swan gasped, "Somehow they've cloned me too!"

"No one can replace you, Prin." Jason said reassuringly, giving her a squeeze. "She just looks like you." He gave me a hard glare that made me shake.

Mark just gaped, openmouthed, at the two of us.

"Which one of you is the _real_ Swan?" he asked nervously.

"I am, of course, Mark!" I answered hotly, just as the other Swan answered, "Well, of course, it's me!"

Jason looked back and forth from the Swan in his arms, to me.

Mark looked desperately at my face, silently pleading with me to prove that _I_ was the real Princess.

The other Swan looked uncertain. I could only imagine what she was feeling, and my heart went out to her.

I walked over, and put my hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry," I said quietly, "But _I'm_ the real Swan. You're actually my _second_ duplicate."

She shook her head, refusing to accept my words.

"No!" she declared. "I _know_ I'm real! I remember! I remember my childhood, at the orphanage, and meeting Chief Anderson for the first time, and going on this ski trip…" A tear rolled down her cheek. "I've _got_ to be real…"

Jason comforted her in his arms, as she began to sob quietly. In contrast, he turned to give me the Condor stare that made grown goons run screaming for their Mommies.

"How dare you try to pull this mental crap on her!" he accused. "It's just another one of Zoltar's filthy tricks!"

Mark stood back, watching the scene unfold in front of him. He looked as if he wanted to speak, but wasn't sure what to say.

I tried again.

"The reason you remember those things, is because _I _remember those things." I explained. "Zoltar made you just like me, with a couple of personality modifications, and a subliminal suggestion to capture the Condor."

"She didn't 'capture' me!" Jason growled, "She helped me fight off those goons!"

"And you wouldn't believe how pissed off Zoltar was!" I giggled at the memory. "He couldn't believe that _both_ of his Swan duplicates had betrayed him. She wasn't supposed to help you with that Whirlwind Pyramid, Jason."

Jason began to look a little unsure. The other Swan still hid her face in his chest. Well, as much as she could, while wearing a visor, anyhow.

Mark came up behind me and put his hand on my arm.

"Can you _prove_ that you're the real Swan, Princess?" he asked me.

I thought for a moment.

"Yes." I said quietly. I addressed the other Swan.

"Look at my arm." I said, holding it out. "I have three wounds here: one from being sedated, and two from having blood drawn… to make duplicates."

The other Swan's eyes flashed defiantly, silently challenging my words.

"Your yo-yo won't work." I continued, "And you can't de-transmute either. Zoltar's scientist wasn't able to replicate our technology."

"You lie!" she turned and spat at me. Pulling away from Jason, she expertly unsheathed her yo-yo and threw it toward the nearest Zoltar tube.

It was a perfect shot. The yo-yo hit the glass, and it cracked. But the Zoltar inside remained unharmed. I could tell that she was frantically trying to send an electric charge down the wire.

"I'm sorry…" I muttered, embracing her. The words felt so empty, but I wasn't sure what else to say.

"I…" she looked tearfully into my eyes. "I'm… not… you…"

"I know…" I said, "But that doesn't mean that you're not a real person. Whatever you are, you're a human being."

"And a darn good G-Force member at that." added Jason. He gently turned the other Swan's face around to look at him.

"If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have escaped all of those goons." he said. "A one person whirlwind wouldn't have been enough."

She nodded, tears sliding down her face.

"I'd do anything for you, Jase." she whispered.

"I know that." he replied, and bent his head so that the tops of their helmets touched, where their foreheads should be.

"We can't leave her here, Commander." I said to Mark.

"I agree." Mark concurred. "We're _all_ getting out of here, but not before we destroy all of these Zoltars."

"I'm with you." Jason said grimly, never taking his eyes off of the other Swan.

Mark nodded my way, and I quickly set a few charges and a timer.

"How about ten minutes?" I asked. "I presume that's enough?"

"It should be." Jason replied. "_My_ Swan can lead us out of her in five, can't you, Prin?"

"Yes..." the other Swan said, wiping her face with her glove. "I'll get you _all_ out of here."

"Then let's go." Mark ordered. We quickly followed the other Swan out of the chamber. She led us into another room, which was littered with various bashed and blackened, green-suited body parts. Despite the carnage, I recognized it as the warehouse in which she and Jason had performed the Whirlwind Pyramid Maneuver.

Jason had been right. She _was_ a member of G-Force. Even Jason couldn't have done all of this on his own.

Mark had a grim look on his face as we quietly picked our way over the broken and battered bodies of Spectran soldiers. It was hard to tell what he was thinking.

Once we were back in the hallway, Jason fell back a bit and pulled me aside as we were walking.

"I'm sorry…" he apologized. "For thinking that…"

"It's okay, Jason." I replied. "I probably would have doubted _you_ if two Condors had shown up."

"Thanks." he muttered. I knew that apologies were difficult for Jason, and that this was saying a lot for him.

"I think it says a lot, that you're supporting her this way." I said softly. "I really respect that, Jase."

He acknowledged my comment with a nod, before moving up beside the other Swan again.

"Everything okay?" Mark asked me quietly.

"Yes…" I answered. "I think it will be…"

I turned to look at him. He was wearing that same soft smile that he had, when we had begun looking for Jason. My heart fluttered, then beat madly as Mark put his arm around me.

When we reached the opening to the sky, through which we had first entered the base, the other Swan stopped, and turned to look at us.

"This is where I leave you all." she said, with quiet resolution.

"No." stated Jason firmly, grasping her arm. "You're coming with us."

"No, Jason." she replied, gently removing his hand from her glove. "Someone has to destroy Zoltar's cloning machine. It's his only one, and all of the data is here as well. If I can set a high level charge in there, we can be sure that he'll never use this technology again."

"That's a worthy goal," Mark said, "But do you have enough time before Princess' charge goes off?"

I saw her wince slightly when Mark referred to me by name. It was obviously painful that ever her name was not her own.

"I'll have to." she said, before turning and flying off down the hallway.

Jason turned to follow her, but Mark held him back.

"You can't, Jason." he ordered, "Let her go. She knows what needs to be done. And _we_ need to get out of here."

"And she doesn't?" Jason whirled to face Mark, a resentful look on his face. "Just because you have _your_ Prin, everything's okay, then, isn't it?"

Mark didn't even flinch.

"We're leaving, _now_." he said. "That's an _order_."

Jason made a bow, adding a mocking flourish, then quickly leapt up out of the base, onto the snow.

I went next, with Mark close behind me. Once all three of us were outside, we ran like hell.

A minute later, a giant explosion rocked the snow-covered forest. The impact of the blast, behind us, knocked us to our knees, driving our faces into the cold, wet ground.

I turned to look back. A giant fireball belched from the ground and up into the sky, leaving behind a massive crater full of blackened, charred debris.

"Princess!" screamed Jason. The anguish in his voice tore at my heart.

I felt strong arms slip around my waist from behind. I leaned back, grateful for Mark's support, both physical and emotional.

Alone in the snow, the Condor hung his head and let out a moan, like a wounded animal.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

I couldn't bear to look at Jason. The pain etched on his face was more than I could bear. Even worse, I felt guilty, because I was in Mark's arms, instead of his.

I didn't _want_ to be there. I selfishly wanted to stay where I was, comforting my Commander, instead of aiding my friend.

Did that make me a horrible person?

Shouldn't I be more empathetic? Jason had always been there for me, and helped me when I was down. All of those times I had wondered if Mark really cared, it had been Jason's shoulder that I had cried upon. And now, when he needed me most, I stayed away.

My guilt overwhelmed me. I had to talk to him.

Turning, I looked at Mark, my eyes pleading with him to understand.

"I need to talk to Jason. " I whispered.

Looking into my eyes, Mark nodded, and released me from his arms. I stepped away reluctantly, but knowing it was the right thing to do.

"I'm going to report to the Chief." he said quietly, as he moved off into the woods.

Walking over to Jason, I knelt down in the snow and wrapped my arms around his shoulders, leaning my head on his back.

The Condor took a deep breath, and silent sobs wracked his body. Slowly, I sat down on the wet ground and held him, almost as if I were rocking a small child.

But Jason wasn't a child. He was a man, with a man's feelings. And even though I wasn't the one he wanted, I was possibly the only person who could help him now.

After a moment, Jason turned his head to look at me. His grey-blue eyes seemed to bore right into my soul.

"Why?" he asked me. "Why, Prin?"

Desperately, I searched for an answer.

"She knew that she had to complete her mission…" I began.

"No." he interrupted me, harshly. "I mean _you_."

I looked at him in embarrassed confusion.

"Why couldn't it have been _you_ who wanted me?" he asked in a defeated tone. "All I ever wanted was to be with you, but you never wanted _me_… it's always been _Mark_… Is it because he's the _Commander_ and I'm just 'Number 2?"

"Why, Prin?" he demanded, tears sliding silently down his face.

I didn't know what to say. What could I tell him? That while he understood me, and made me feel safe and desirable, I just didn't have feelings that bridged the gap between friendship and… something more? That while I had occasionally wondered what it might be like, such thoughts were always replaced with dreams of Mark?

"I…" I mumbled, "I…"

But I didn't get any further. Mark shouted a warning, and I saw something moving among the blackened rubble. When Jason saw where my attention was focused, he turned and looked in the same direction.

In an instant, the Condor was on his feet and running.

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I watched Jason dash across the ground, toward the smoking pit that had been an underground Spectran base. Mark came up to me and held out his hand.

"Come on!" he urged.

He didn't have to tell me twice. I put my hand in his and the two of us followed Jason's lead.

As we approached, I saw Jason stop, and start digging at the rubble. And then I saw a flash of white…

"Prin!" he shouted.

Mark and I came to a standstill, as Jason pulled the other Swan from the debris. Slowly, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, she stood on her own two feet, and then she embraced the Condor.

"Uh… maybe we should give them some privacy…" I suggested.

"I was thinking we might want a little privacy ourselves." Mark smiled.

At this moment, I could think of nothing better.

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It took us the rest of the day, but we did eventually make our way back to the lodge on foot. Just before reaching the ski area, Jason, Mark, and I de-transmuted. The other Swan, of course, was unable to do so. I ran back to the lodge by myself, and managed to find an extra set of clothes for her, before returning to where the others were hidden.

"Sorry…" I apologized, as I gave her an extra pair of striped jeans and a number 3 shirt. "I don't have a lot of extra clothes."

"That's okay." she smiled at me. "I'm used to these. And what else were you going to bring out: the slipdress?"

I guess my surprise showed on my face. I had forgotten that she knew everything about me, including what was in my overnight bag. She laughed at my confusion.

"Now, can you get the gentlemen out of here, so I can change?" she murmured.

"Sure thing…" I winked at her.

As we had walked back to the lodge, I had spent some time speaking with the other Swan. Strangely enough, deep down, she _was_ me, but there was definitely a subtly different outlook on life. She seemed a little… bolder… more adventurous. And definitely more impatient. When I thought about it, she was better suited to Jason than I was. I was glad that they were together.

I told the guys to go on ahead, and that the other Swan and I would catch up to them shortly. Once we were alone, she quickly changed. I rolled up her G-Force uniform into an unrecognizable bundle around her helmet, so we could carry it back with us.

"So… what's going to happen to me, now?" she asked.

"I don't know…" I replied. "What do you _want_ to happen?"

"I want to keep living my life as I always have." she shrugged. "At least…"

"The way the Swan always has." I offered. She nodded.

"Yes…" she continued, "I want to be a part of G-Force… work at Jill's… watch Keyop as he grows up…" She looked over at me fearfully. "Does that bother you?"

I thought about it for a moment.

"With anyone else, I would definitely be bothered." I replied slowly, "But with you… somehow… it seems… right… to share my life. As if we were … sisters…"

She smiled at that.

"In a way, it's as if we _are_ sisters." she said. "Same DNA, slightly different personalities… almost like… twins."

"Think of the fun we could have…" I giggled.

"Keyop won't know what hit him!" she giggled back.

"I'm looking forward to it already!" I winked at her.

"Me too." she answered. Then she sighed. "But if I'm going to stick around, we can't _both_ be Princess."

"I guess not…" I said. "I think we can both be Swans, but you should at least have your own name."

"When I was in the orphanage, I had an imaginary friend…" she said, lost in thought.

"Aggie." I replied.

"Yes… of course… you remember…" she blushed. "Would it be okay with you, if I…"

"It's perfect!" I exclaimed, hugging her. "I'm so glad you're here… Aggie!"

I was really looking forward to having a sister, and by the look on Aggie's face, I could tell that she was too.

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When Aggie and I got back to the lodge, Jason grabbed her hand and practically flew back to our room.

"Uh… I guess I'm not going back to my room tonight…" I mumbled, embarrassed.

"That's okay." Mark replied. "You can stay with me."

I looked up in surprise. Was this the same man, who only two days before, had informed me that he had booked a separate room to avoid sharing with me? Something had happened to Mark in that Spectran base, and I needed to know what it was.

"All right…" I said carefully. I held my breath, waiting for him to retract his offer.

But he didn't.

Instead, he took my hand and led me down the hallway to his room.

Once inside, he sat down on the bed, and indicated that I should sit beside him.

Butterflies rose in my stomach. Was this really happening?

"I think we need to talk, Princess." Mark said quietly.

I sighed. _This_ was the Mark I knew. I sank down next to him on the bed.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Mark turned to me, and took both of my hands in his. But he didn't speak. It seemed like he was searching for the right words.

My heart sank. He was going to tell me that there could be nothing between us. I prepared myself for the worst.

"When I decided to go on this ski trip, I wasn't interested in skiing." Mark said.

"You weren't?" I asked, confused.

"No…" Mark replied, "I was interested in spending a week with _you_."

I blushed. I wasn't entirely sure how to respond to that.

"I don't know exactly when it happened," Mark continued, "But a couple of years ago I realized that I was enjoying spending time with you… in a different way from the fun I had hanging out with Jason and Tiny."

My mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out.

"I was going out of my way to be close to you," Mark said, ignoring my stunned state, "because being with you made me happy. I didn't consciously realize what was happening, until one day, when the Chief called me into his office."

"The Chief?" I asked. "When was this?" None of this was making sense to me, but I was starting to get a sense that maybe not everything was as bad as I had thought at first.

"About eighteen months ago." Mark replied.

"What did he say?" I asked, curious.

"Basically, he told me that he had seen how much time I was spending with you, and he was concerned." Mark said slowly.

"Concerned about what?" I felt like I was interrogating my poor Eagle, but I had to know.

"About us."

"_Us_?" There was an 'us'? My heart did a quick somersault.

"He told me that you and I… that we could never be more than just friends. I guess he had been talking to Zark, and the two of them had thought that something… more… might develop." Mark explained.

Of course, that was exactly what I had been longing for, and I'm sure it showed on my face, but I kept silent.

"The Chief said that we could never be more than just friends." Mark went on, after a brief pause.

"But why not?" I burst out, indignant.

"Because, if we were in a _relationship_, it might unbalance G-Force… mess with the team dynamic."

Wait, had he just said the word _relationship_?

"How could a… uh… relationship… do that?" I stuttered.

"The Chief felt that, as Commander, I might make decisions based on my feelings for you, rather than the good of the team." Mark said quietly.

"That's ridiculous!" I cried indignantly, "You _always_ put the good of the team first, Mark, no matter _what_ your personal feelings!"

"I try…" Mark gave a weak smile, "But… I don't actually think that was the _real_ reason…"

"Huh?" Now I was confused again. It seemed like when it came to my feelings for Mark, I was always in a muddle.

"During our conversation, he almost… came across as a father… interviewing his daughter's date for the prom." Mark replied, "I think he was concerned about you, Princess, and didn't want to see you hurt."

"What?" I was nearly screaming. _The Chief_ had been interfering in my love life? Or lack thereof. Grrrrr….

"If it makes you feel better, I know he talked to Jason and Tiny about it as well." Mark quickly put in.

"Well at least he didn't talk to Keyop too!" I was livid. "How dare he? As if any of you would ever hurt me! Especially you, Mark, you'd never hurt me!" I declared.

"But I _have_ hurt you Princess." Mark admitted, hanging his head. "I've hurt you by ignoring you. After the Chief talked to me, I started backing off, and you didn't know why… you were hurting…"

I was taken aback. I remembered feeling like Mark was pulling away from me, and I _had_ been hurt. But I had assumed that the fault lay with me. I was surprised, and somehow touched, that Mark had known how I felt.

"It's not _your_ fault, Mark." I said softly, squeezing his hands.

"But it is." he protested. "At least, I owed you an explanation, but I was too embarrassed to say anything."

I could understand that. Heck, I was embarrassed about my feelings for Mark as well.

"If it makes you feel better," I said, "I talked to Jason about why you… weren't as friendly… as you had been. I asked him outright. And he didn't say _anything_ about the Chief being involved!"

"I talked to Jason too." Mark admitted, "And he didn't think the Chief's 'talk' was important at all. He just ignores rules that get in his way, and felt that I should too. But as Commander, I just couldn't do that…"

He looked up at me, his eyes pleading with me to understand.

"I just couldn't disobey an order, Princess… no matter how much I wanted to…" he said, "I knew that it was all my fault. It didn't take me long to realize that my feelings for you went deeper than I had realized, and that I was miserable without you."

"Oh, Mark…" I felt terrible for him. He obviously felt incredibly guilty about this. I squeezed his hands again.

He smiled at me, silently thanking me for my sympathy. I smiled back.

"About a year ago, I decided that I had to do something about it." he continued, "No matter what the Chief thought."

I sat up straight in surprise. It was incredibly unlike Mark to go against the Chief's wishes.

"So… why didn't you?" I asked, bewildered.

"I tried…" Mark said, "But it seemed like you were over me… that you weren't interested. So I backed off again."

"I _never_ got over you, Mark." I said gently, "I just got used to the idea that _you_ weren't interested, and I gave up my expectations that anything might happen between us. But… I always held on to my dreams." I smiled at him, hoping desperately he would respond the way I hoped. My heart was pounding in my chest.

His blue eyes twinkled, and he grinned boyishly at me. I had butterflies in my stomach.

"When Keyop asked me to go on this ski trip with you, at first I didn't think it was a good idea… But then, I thought about being alone with you for an entire week, and I wondered if maybe…" His voice drifted off, and his eyes had a faraway look. He turned back to look at me.

"I decided that I had to go. I had to see if a relationship between us could work."

"But… we weren't alone." I added, still processing what Mark was saying.

"No." Mark agreed, "Jason was here too… and he was interested in you as well."

I couldn't suppress the look of shock on my face. Mark smiled.

"Whether or not you realized it, Princess, I had to fight for you… and that made me see how precious you really were to me."

"How sweet!" I gushed. I felt like an idiot for such an inane response, but at this point my mind was too befuddled to think of anything better.

"But when I was with… the other Swan…" Mark said seriously, "She sacrificed herself for me… and the pain in my heart was incredible…" A tear rolled down his cheek.

I reached up and touched it with a finger, gently wiping it away. Almost unconsciously, Mark caught my hand and pressed it against his cheek. He seemed lost in his memories of the other Swan.

"I watched her…" he gulped, "I watched _you_… die… and I knew I could never be happy again…"

I didn't know what to say, so I reached out to hold him. His head fell on my shoulder, and I felt his body trembling with emotion.

"Last night…" Mark whispered, "in that cave, you said that your worst fear was dying alone. And I realized, that was _exactly_ what I had let you do, because I had never told you how I felt… you had died, never knowing…"

"Knowing… what?" I asked, barely daring to breathe.

Mark buried his face in my neck.

"Knowing that… I love you…" I could barely hear him, but he sat up, holding his face an inch away, before brushing his lips softly against mine.

"I love you, Princess." he said, emboldened. I could definitely hear him this time.

My heart skipped a beat. I was so taken aback that I forgot to breathe for a moment. After a couple of seconds I regained some semblance of control, and took in a deep gulp of air.

"I love you too, Mark." I replied, as I pressed my lips against his. This kiss didn't last much longer than the first, but it was a little more bold.

Mark's face took on an incredulous look, as if he couldn't believe this was happening.

I knew just how he felt, because I was feeling the same thing. It was bizarre seeing my emotions mirrored in his eyes, as if we were somehow inter-connected.

Mark's hand lifted slowly, until he was touching my hair. Gently, he ran his fingers through it, over and over.

"You're so beautiful, Princess…" he whispered, "When I look at you, I'm lost…"

With only the slightest bit of hesitation, I reached out to touch his face.

"I've dreamed of this." I admitted, "But I never actually thought it could really happen."

Mark slid his right arm around my waist, pulling me nearer to him, while his left hand threaded its way through my hair to the back of my neck. He bent his head, and his lips found mine.

Somehow, in that whirl of emotion, I slipped my arms around his neck and moved even closer to him.

I don't know how long that kiss lasted. We were lost in a delicious exploration of mouths, lips, tongues… For all I knew, it might have been hours before Mark's lips reluctantly left mine, but it was likely only minutes. I looked into his eyes, and with sudden clarity, I knew exactly what I saw there.

_Lust._

And that's when a finger of doubt crept into my mind.

This was all too good to be true. How could I allow myself to believe that this was actually happening? Dreams didn't come true that easily.

Mark was being ruled by his physical needs at that moment. I knew then that the next morning he would probably decide that the Chief was right.

But it wasn't tomorrow yet. I had a chance, if I wanted to act on it.

I decided that I did. If I didn't take the opportunity that was presenting itself, I knew I would always regret it. I threw caution to the wind.

"Make love to me, Mark." I whispered.

"What?" he looked startled, as if it were the last thing he expected to hear me say. Well, maybe it was. I wasn't normally so forward, but perhaps a bit of Aggie had rubbed off on me. I pressed on.

"I want to know how it feels to be with a man…" I explained, "To have him love me fully... I want you to make love to me, Mark."

Mark appeared stunned.

"You mean, you've never…"

"I was waiting for you." I smiled. "I've only ever wanted _you_, Mark."

He still seemed shell-shocked by my words. I knew that I would have to push him a little further, or this would never happen. I didn't want to spend the rest of my life wondering what it _could_ have been like with Mark.

And there was no one else in the world I would ever want to give my virginity to.

Emboldened, I stood up. I reached up to the neck of my lavender ski suit, and slowly began to unzip it, carefully watching Mark's face as I did so. He seemed… amazed… and I saw the desire in his eyes deepen.

It was working. I smiled to myself.

Gradually, I slid down the zipper, until it was at my navel. Then I carefully slipped it from my shoulders, shrugging it down until it fell from my arms. I wiggled my hips, causing it to lower further, until it puddled at my feet.

I stepped out of my boots and the suit at the same time, so that I was standing in front of my Commander in nothing but a skimpy bra and panties.

I reached out for his hands, drawing him up to stand next to me.

"Love me, Mark!" I pleaded, in a husky voice.

Mark just stared at me, unmoving, his mouth open.

Disappointment crashed over me like a tidal wave. I had done the best I could, with my limited experience, and Mark _still_ wasn't responding. My cheeks began to turn red from embarrassment.

Still… I had gone this far… perhaps I should give it one last try. I swallowed my pride, and began to reach behind my back, to undo my bra.

Mark reached out and lightly touched my arm.

"Stop, Princess." he said softly.

He didn't want me.

I thought I had been embarrassed before, but now I was completely humiliated. Some great idea! I couldn't prevent a tear from slipping down my cheek as I tried to turn away.

"_I _would like to do that." he whispered huskily.

Huh?

I watched, astounded, as Mark pulled off his shirt, and pants… and within seconds he stood there wearing only his briefs.

And then it hit me.

This was actually going to happen.

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_**A/N This story concludes in Snowbound: Swan, Part II. This story has a rating of M for sexual content, so please do not read if this offends you. Thanks!**_

_**If you enjoyed this fic, please check out Snowbound: Eagle, soon to be posted!**_


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